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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24704440">Contact</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/KE12/pseuds/KE12'>KE12</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Mass Effect Trilogy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe, First Contact, First Contact War</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-04-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 10:42:31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>129,394</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24704440</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/KE12/pseuds/KE12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Having no Eezo in Sol, Humanity failed to conquer FTL technology resulting in them being confined to Sol, but this simply allowed them to focus on other technologies. What happens when the Citadel Council stumble across them in the year 3517AD?  The Council wants Humanities technology, and Humanity wants out of Sol, but can a deal be struck? </p><p>Heavy focus on First Contact aspects. Competent Council. Level headed Turians.  Hanar Pirates. Geth. Heretics. Reaper with a plan. Batarians. AI. Things don't always go to plan.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>46</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. New Arrivals</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hey, first time posting on AO3. If the formatting is bad, give me a tad and I'll figure it out. Also, before anyone comments, I have this up on FF under the same name, this version only differs in the fact I've gone back and fixed plot holes and edited bits and bobs that people disliked. I'm half tempted to jump ship due to all the adverts so this is me testing the waters so to speak.</p>
    </blockquote><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Being chased by Hanar Pirates, the crew of Citadel Vessel Avian realises their only chance to escape is to flee through an unopened Relay.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>3517AD</p>
<p>Some would say Humanity has reached its peak, most diseases have been cured, with only the very rare, or very new not being remedied, world hunger has been long solved with mass farming on once barren landscapes and artificial growth of meat products in labs. Worldwide enforced education programs mean there is now a 100% literacy rate, pollution is at an all-time low, and the economy has been entirely reformatted to now run off energy, instead of easily mined gold.</p>
<p>Humanity could be said to be in her golden age after the 3 world wars that scarred the 20th and 21st century, and the War of Sol that rocked the solar system in the 29th century. Despite claims of being in a golden age, there is a single problem that seems to be beyond Human reach. Faster Than Light, FTL, has so far escaped Human grasp, no matter the funding, resources or time thrown at the problem, the solution for affordable and safe FTL has been ever elusive.</p>
<p>One known method of FTL, using an element dubbed as 'Element Zero', has long been proven to be unfeasible. The element has not been found in nature, preventing its mining, and making enough of the element is out of the question due to the extreme resources required to produce the necessary quantities. The truth is, people would rather make their own small part of the galaxy a more comfortable home then spend so many resources on something which will probably provide little back. The problems with Element Zero are so significant that no one has even tried to use it for FTL.</p>
<p>But, this has not constricted Humanity to Earth, merely to Sol, the solar system they live in. People are living on Mars, Venus and Mercury, then some have taken to calling gigantic ringworlds above the Earth, Mars and Venus their home. In the far depths of the solar system past Jupiter lives another set of people who call themselves the Belters, these people live in large habitats n orbit of various worlds, but their populations are relatively low.</p>
<p>Being restricted to Sol has forced Humanity to learn how to terraform planets instead of merely casting them aside to find another, most notably Mars, and being confined to Sol has had other unintended yet positive consequences. Some technologies have flourished, with the economy not trying to support an expansion outside of Sol it has left more time and supplies to look at other things that could improve the ever-smaller worlds they live on. Examples being AI and computing developed on Earth are some of the most advanced in the galaxy, and food production technologies are far beyond any other species capabilities. Further, because Humanity has so few words, planetary defences have been developed that unleash hells fury like no other.</p>
<p>By most standards, Earth is considered an impenetrable fortress, the War of Sol almost cost the world, so all efforts were made to ensure its defences are without question. In truth, humans wanted her safe, and so they spared no effort to make it so; no other planet can claim to be their place of origin, and it provides most of Humanities food. If Earth fell, despite all their advances, Humanity would still struggle. Would they perish? Not at all, but most would miss the blue orb.</p>
<p>While Earth is heavily defended, the truth is Humanity as a whole lacks an arsenal of war vessels. Each planet in Sol can only claim to have a small armoury of high tech stealth vessels and a few old but by no means unsophisticated Planetary Assault Craft, commonly known as PAC's. With Sol being at peace for over 700 years, and planetary defences that could eliminate any fleet of old, most do not really see the need for a flotilla of war machines.</p>
<p>Ultimately, while Humanity may be restricted to Sol, it could be strongly argued it has done the civilisation a great good, allowing them to advance to a suitable stage prior to any FTL discovery.</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>Unknown space - Citadel Vessel Avian</p>
<p>Councilor Tevos paces back and forth on the bridge of the Avian, she had previously been advised by the Asari republics not to embark on this mission, for fears of her safety, but she ignored them. She remembers telling the Republic Council that the discovery was just too great to pass up, but now, she regrets ever leaving the safety of the Citadel. "Corvinus," She says to the Turian Captain of her vessel, "How long till the Turian reinforcements arrive?"</p>
<p>The Turian watches her pace back and forth with his small black eyes that are a signature of his race before saying, "18 hours 15, no sooner." It is almost the same answer as the last time she asked, minus 5 minutes, but the Turian captain does not voice this frustration. Tevos is one of his ultimate bosses, so it is not his place to vent with her.</p>
<p>The Asari blinks as she continues to pace, "And how long till the pirates catch us?"</p>
<p>"At best, 16 hours 30." Corvinus replies respectfully before adding, "And that is assuming our damaged engines continue to operate with the same efficiency as per. We will not survive another encounter."</p>
<p>Tevos blinks, not knowing how the Turian can sound so calm with the situation. Eventually, she asks, "How long will it take to arrive at the Relay?"</p>
<p>Corvinus flares his mandibles a little, "We can arrive at the uncharted Relay in 14 hours. I must advise you that we will need to activate it."</p>
<p>"I know of the implications." Tevos snaps, knowing it will be the first Relay opened in a thousand years or so which will result in a full-blown investigation that could lead many to lose their jobs, or heads even in the case of the Turians. "But we can not let the pirates get their hands on our cargo, the results of which will have devastating consequences throughout the galaxy. Corvinus, activate the Relay and proceed through."</p>
<p>There is a silence in the room as the various officers silently question the decision, and eventually, Corvinus says, "As you wish. Helmsman, take us to the uncharted Relay, maximum sustainable velocity. Science, find the protocols for Relay activation."</p>
<p>"As you command," The Turian helmsman says, repeating the famous mantra of a Turian soldier as he turns the ship towards the uncharted Relay.</p>
<p>Arriving at the Relay, Tevos gives it a hard look, the Relay looks just like any other powered down Relay, it is frosted over and carries an intimidating appearance, quietly informing all who see it of the power it holds within. Nodding to the science officer, she says, "Initiate it."</p>
<p>Corvinus quickly speaks up to add, "And release a probe to inform the Turian peacekeeping fleet inbound where we have gone." If the Turians come across the newly powered Relay, they are unlikely to just storm through like headless varren, unless they have reasonable cause to enter uncharted space. By the time the Relay is powered up and ready for use, the Pirates are just a mere half-hour behind the citadel vessel and are closing in fast.</p>
<p>/../</p>
<p>United Nations Space Command (UNSC)- Sol</p>
<p>A man in a dark navy blue uniform walks briskly into a room, people he passes pay respect to him, but he is not interested in returning their salutes, he has bigger fish to fry at the moment. Arriving at a table in the centre of the room, he says, "What is the situation?"</p>
<p>A slim man with greying hair begins to speak, "Half an hour ago, Charon was a moon around Pluto, now..." The man brings an image up on a screen at the bottom of the table, "This is an image from a mapping satellite we had in orbit of Charon." Instead of barren rock, there is a vast construct surrounded by some broken rocks. Just before the military man can ask a question the older man goes on to say, "Thankfully, with Charon being so far away from the sun resulting in little to no natural light arriving at the moon, there aren't any settlements we need to worry about."</p>
<p>"Good," The decorated man replies before pointing to the unknown object, "Next question, where did it come from?"</p>
<p>The scientist quickly plays a video, showing the moon break apart as the unknown object begins to power up. The General clenches his jaw at the sight, hating what this potentially means. "Is our satellite still orbiting what was left of Charon?"</p>
<p>The scientist yet again nods, "The satellite has QEC installed, allowing for live transmission. Amazingly we have also discovered this device has an unusual mass allowing our satellite to maintain an orbit, despite Charon having mostly drifted..." As the man speaks the rings on the construct, begin to spin so fast that they become a blur, and a second or so later a second much smaller construct appears next to the first construct. This second construct seems to be damaged and is venting something.</p>
<p>The General has seen enough and raises a hand to his ear, "Lucias, get me the Chief of General Staff," He says with a stern voice that only years of being in the military have allowed him to perfect, after a moment a voice greets him and he says, "I must advise we activate condition Alpha 1 as of this second."</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>Avian</p>
<p>The moment the vessel drops out of the relay corridor Corvinus says, "Sensors, report!"</p>
<p>The sensor subject matter expert takes a moment to collect information his various sensors have made before stating, "System has 9 Planets, no life signs... wait, cancel last, we have a satellite around the Relay."</p>
<p>Corvinus turns to his sensors expert, "On screen!" This is what he feared would happen.</p>
<p>The satellite that is projected onto the screen is small and white, it has no visible satellite antenna or FTL drive, meaning whoever created this device will probably have to come back to retrieve the information from it. Corvinus takes a second before saying, "Leave it, we can collect it for study later."</p>
<p>The Avian spends a further few minutes collecting information on the new and uncharted solar system before the sensor expert says "I don't like this," The Salarian taps a few keys in frustration before saying, "This space is quiet, real quiet, too quiet."</p>
<p>Tevos turns to the expert, "How do you mean?" She can feel her skin become ever so slightly statically charged, a natural Asari response akin to human hairs standing on end. This response allows Asari to power their biotics ever so slightly quicker than without.</p>
<p>"Well," The sensor expert begins to explain. "99% of planets emit or reflect a natural signal that we can detect, yet none of the inner planets here are emitting a signal, and their gravity wells are for the better part dubious as if they were being masked. I would dare say, if we were not in the system and with the most modern sensors, these planets would be undetectable."</p>
<p>"Which planet is most masked?" Asks Tevos with a raised brow.</p>
<p>"3rd one in." The sensor expert says, "Almost entirely undetectable, even its light emissions are distorted."</p>
<p>Tevos thinks heavily before saying, "Take us to the third planet."</p>
<p>Corvinus flares his mandibles again; he does not like this at all, "If there is a new civilisation there, which is likely due to the fact we just found their satellite, then is this the wisest decision Councillor? We still have a hostile tail."</p>
<p>Tevos swallows before blinking, "Yes, the Hanar have infamously bad sensors, and if whoever lives on that planet has something that can hide a world, it sure as Athame it can hide a ship." She takes a moment before adding, "And if they do find us, then with any hope a new civilisation will make our tail question their decision to attack us, and if all else fails, we can beg for help or land."</p>
<p>Corvinus does not agree with the Asari's logic, but who is he to argue with the upper echelons?</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>Unfortunately for Tevos, the Hanar appear quicker than expected and are now only 10 minutes behind them, and with the Avians damaged engines, the aquatic beings are more than likely to catch up soon. Fortunately, the alien world is no more than 13 minutes from their current location.</p>
<p>After 8 minutes of pushing the Avians engines to their limits, the 3rd planet is now a small blue orb, and sensors can detect some landmass, but still nothing much else, which means this world must have cloaking technology around it of some sort, and any civilisation that can cloak a world is powerful in Tevos's mind.</p>
<p>"Captain, detecting an energy surge, Hanar are firing."</p>
<p>"Are they mad?" Queries Tevos as the helmsman moves the Avian to the side and the Hanar's superheated tungsten round passes them without causing any damage. This pattern repeats until they are well within the visual range of the alien world, and at this distance, the enormous ringworld above the planet can be seen, and the megacities on Earth are visible.</p>
<p>"Another shot incoming," Someone says.</p>
<p>So far it has taken around 20 seconds for the shots to catch the Avian, which is more than ample time to manoeuvre out of the way, but someone quickly adds, "Projectile trajectory calculated, shot will hit into an ocean within 10km of a city on the planet."</p>
<p>The Captain gives Tevos a quick sorry glance before turning to his helmsman, "Put us in the way of that shot."</p>
<p>"As you command," The Turian helmsman says quietly before doing as asked, knowing that this action will ultimately kill many of his fellow crewmen.</p>
<p>When the shot impacts on the Avian its effects are felt immediately, generators onboard the vessel blow, engines splutter out of life, artificial gravity fails, primary lights fail and atmosphere vents from various locations where the hull has warped, torn and fractured. The worst damage is to the left aft section, which has mostly been removed and cavitated. The bridge, being at the ships forward section, remains unscathed, other than the issues as mentioned earlier regarding lighting and gravity. The Avian, however, still has some of its batteries and supercapacitors, which means some systems are still working, such as sensors and emergency lighting, it is not much, but still something.</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>UNSC</p>
<p>The General blows out a sigh of relief as he witnesses the first alien vessel move into the way of the shot, preventing it from reaching Earth and testing her mostly untested planetary shielding.</p>
<p>"General," A voice belonging to the President fills the air, "You have my and our people's blessing." The President audibly breathes out, before going on, "Had that hit and our shields fell I have no doubt Bejing would be in serious trouble right now, unleash our wrath how you best see fit."</p>
<p>Till this point, the President had been happy to watch in order to learn everything he could. The General nods, he too feels relieved, not only for the lives saved but for the more selfish reason being that he has good friends in Beijing. Looking to the roof, the General speaks aloud, "Ultron, eliminate hostile ships. Authorisation code Papa, Guinea, Lema, six, nine, Bravo, Zulu two."</p>
<p>An automated sounding voice confirms the authorisation code, and shortly the General is watching as six stealth defence platforms power their weapons and an artificial intelligence calculates weapon trajectories.</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>CV Avian</p>
<p>"Captain," The sensor expert speaks as he looks at his console. "Detecting six power surges from the planets orbit." Before the expert could add any more information six beams of burning hot white light pass the Avian and obliterate the Hanar vessels. "It was a weapon, all Hanar vessels destroyed!"</p>
<p>"Just like that?" Asks the Captain who is sitting in the Captain's chair, a seatbelt holding him down, "Do we have a recording?" Most onboard are trained to operate their vessels with a loss of gravity, so the Avians crew are not too affected by its loss.</p>
<p>"Putting it on screen now." A second later and the main view screen is displaying six vessels being consumed by what can only be described as a beam of either white-hot plasma, or dare Corvinus to say it, energy.</p>
<p>"Goddess," Tevos says as she tries to keep herself grounded, but the task is proving to be harder than she would like, it has been too long since she experienced zero gravity in a spinning ship. "What was that?"</p>
<p>The Turian flares his mandibles a little and then says, "Not good news. Do we have comms?"</p>
<p>"No." A communications officer says. "Primary and secondary transmitters were torn off by debris from the earlier impact."</p>
<p>The Turian captain releases a low growl, making a sound only Turians can make, showing his frustration at their current situation, "Then once we have collected survivors make that our top priority. I also want a message passed through any shipwide terminals that are still working, inform our crew we are being watched and will potentially have unknown visitors; we are to adopt a non-hostile stance towards them. They are to operate under section commanders until further notice."</p>
<p>"As you command."</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>UNSC - 1 hour later</p>
<p>"The ship is spinning in an uncontrolled manner, it is dead in the water." A high ranking figure says with a slam of his hand, "We should take it into our possession now before it can provide resistance." The whole topic of what to do with the damaged alien vessel has caused some heated arguments.</p>
<p>"And risk angering a second species or group?" The President says with some concern, "I think not, and that is not to mention that this ship deliberately moved into the path of the projectile that was heading for our home. I will not have our people, our species, be hostile to people that will put their neck on the line for a civilisation they do not know or have relations with."</p>
<p>There is a quiet in the room until the President speaks again, "I want a rescue mission sent in ASAP. Marines of the highest calibre only, soft posture. Cerberus, prepare our people for any hostilities, I will make sure you have whatever resources you deem fit."</p>
<p>A general nods her head before leaving the room to make the necessary arrangements.</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>Avian - 2 hours 30 later.</p>
<p>Captain Corvinus looks around the battered medical bay; there are more bodies covered in thin black sheets than those receiving medical aid. The annoying thing is that because his crew have been working now for over 36 hours straight with little to no rest in order to keep the ship moving, there is a fair share of people here with injuries caused by mistakes through tiredness. With a frustrated growl, he turns to leave the room, but before he can, a voice stops him, "Captain, we have a situation. We have an unidentified ship outside."</p>
<p>"On my way," The Captain says. "Where did it come from?" He didn't really need to ask this question, he already knew the answer. There is a moment of silence till the man on the other side of the radio says, "It just appeared next to us."</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>UNSC Hawkings</p>
<p>Shepard stifles a laugh as she watches her cohort play a prank on a comrade that has fallen asleep, that being to see how much they can draw on his face. "Alright, jarheads and foreheads." A voice crackles over the ship's intercom, taking a light jab at the marines, "As expected our docks are incompatible, so you're going to be doing some good old EVA'ing..."</p>
<p>The marine that was asleep awakens with the voice and immediately begins to spit paper from his mouth that was wide open catching flies, earning a chuckle all around, no one tells him of the drawings. "... So suit up and be ready to move in 5."</p>
<p>As the marine that was asleep grumbles, Shepard begins to do the final checks of her armour and weapons. "Hey, Shepard," One of the marines says as he does his own checks, "Is your brother always so miserable?" This question gains the attention of most in the room.</p>
<p>Shepard doesn't look up as she replies, "He's Space Force and actually has to do something that isn't a woman for a change, so of course he will be miserable." Those in the Space Force are well known for their fancy lifestyles, and they often clash with the 3 other forces because of it.</p>
<p>"Aww yeah," One of the marines says, "How could I forget? Bloody Spacey."</p>
<p>Soon the small contingency of 15 marines are at the airlock and are exposed to the vast emptiness that is space, "Alrighty," Shepard says to her men through comms as the point man unlocks his mag boots and enters the harsh love of space, "Remember, the president is watching and..."</p>
<p>Leonid Shepard interrupts, speaking from the bridge of the Hawkings, "To keep it in your pants. We know what you marines are like if it has a pulse and is warm..."</p>
<p>Lidochka Shepard rolls her eyes before saying, "Shouldn't you spacey's be more interested in aliens, and wasn't it someone in the Space Force who was recently caught..."</p>
<p>"...Yeah yeah, just get your job done."</p>
<p>"Was it a goat or a sheep?" Someone laughs, "Now what were you saying, boss?"</p>
<p>"A goat. Now, in essence, we're here to make friends, as much as we can make friends with aliens, so no shooting blind or on sight like usual... Vega."</p>
<p>"Hey," The hulking man replies as he looks up from his own checks, "My room clearance is top-notch. Even says so in my AAR." AAR is his annual appraisal report.</p>
<p>Shepard lands on the alien vessel through an exposed tear in the ship's hull before responding, "Then how come you've been shot three times doing that very job? 1 Section, all-around defence."</p>
<p>As 1 sec secure the 'landing' site, Vega replies, "When you have this much muscle, something is bound to hit every now and then. And if you're not happy with my means, why did you write the opposite in my AAR?"</p>
<p>Another voice pipes in, "James, fat isn't a muscle, and she will have written so because we aren't typically used for soft cuddly missions like this. Pirates are rarely shown any love."</p>
<p>"Hey Ash, that's just downright mean."</p>
<p>Shepard rolls her eyes yet again as she catches a box that is passed to her, the box is filled with supplies and equipment for rescuing stranded personnel in space. With the landing zone secured and all supplies onboard the marines make their way towards a door that has been sealed against the vacuum of space, "Alright, you know the drill."</p>
<p>First, a sensor is placed on the door, and since an atmosphere is detected in the next room an atmosphere shield is then placed in front of the door, which will allow solid bodies to pass through but contain gasses such as those found in an atmosphere. Next, a plasma torch that can operate in zero atmospheric conditions cuts through the door, and finally, James uses his hulking mass and exoskeleton to force the door open.</p>
<p>Getting inside of the room a marine takes an atmosphere reading, "Hey boss, these readings are either wrong, or this is breathable, I mean its a little heavy on the oxygen, but it's well within safety limits. Pressure is good too, 1015.25 mbar."</p>
<p>Shepard looks around her guys before nodding, "Then orders from the top is soft posture guys." After saying this, each marines armour reacts, and their helmets collapse down their necks. It is a hazardous move considering they do not know who these aliens are or can possibly predict how they will react to their presence as they do not know their temperament.</p>
<p>"You know," Someone says as the Marines move through the room to the next door, "I was thinking, what we are doing right now, like on this ship, it's incredibly stupid. Something only a politician would think is a good idea stupid."</p>
<p>"Oh yeah?" Asks Shepard, looking for more information.</p>
<p>"Yeah, like when we run into ET, what are we going to say..." The marine clears his throat for the next word, "...'WAZZAA?' and wave our arms like a tit? We know none of their language, customs, ways, hell, we don't even know what they look like. Us shaking hands to them could be us waving our dong in one hand while flipping the bird with the other, so this plan from up top, it's stupid."</p>
<p>"We are marines," Shepard shrugs as she observes the room around her, "The Jarheads and the foreheads, we excel at the stupid, so we will make something up when it comes to it; besides, I think the egg heads have given us something, so we don't need to speak."</p>
<p>"Rooooogger that." The man replies, naturally sceptical of the egg heads plan.</p>
<p>There is a crackle over the radio before a General speaks in their earpieces, sounding rather irate. "Get a grip. The President is listening to everything you are saying."</p>
<p>There is a moment of silence till one of the marines says, "Well, there goes my skiing trip." This causes a chuckle among the marines, with everyone knowing it means their request for leave is likely to be denied because of this and duties assigned instead, not that any of them expect to have leave approved with everything going on.</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>In the next room over, Corvinus looks at a monitor that displays the aliens in the adjacent room, the aliens are heavily armoured and heavily armed, and from his time as a foot soldier, he can tell that they know what they are doing, and are well versed in it. They also look like they are ready to deliver punishment, but the Captain can also tell they are here for a different purpose just from their stance and demeanour, but he does not kid himself that they wouldn't fight with ferocity if needed to.</p>
<p>With a deep breath, he turns to a sailor who is guarding the nearby door that will open to reveal the aliens, the door needs hand-cranked open due to the lack of power. "Open it," He commands. This task proves to be harder than anticipated due to the lack of gravity and the ship's spin.</p>
<p>As the doors slowly open the Captain can see the aliens react and move into more appropriate cover, but he does not react, he uses his spine that the Turian army blessed him with to suppress any reactions. After a moment for the aliens to accept their new position the Captain walks through the door and looks around, so far so good, he thinks, having not been shot.</p>
<p>After a few seconds, one of the aliens moves out of cover and stands in the middle of the corridor, it looks him up and down before moving back slowly to a box the aliens dragged in and opening it. The alien then takes a small device out and places it against a wall, creating a blue barrier against the wall. The alien then opens the door it used to enter the room, showing a similar barrier and its capability to hold an atmosphere in.</p>
<p>The alien then picks up an identical object and slowly approaches Corvinus, holding the item out towards him while pointing to a small button. Corvinus slowly accepts the item before handing it to an aide behind him with the instruction to take it and test it.</p>
<p>Next, the alien takes a display pad out of the box and plays a video which shows the Avian being tugged to the ringworld above the nearby planet, followed by a second video showing the Avians crew moving onto the UNSC Hawkings, and a third video showing the Avian left alone with the box of goodies the marines brought onboard. The alien then holds the pad out, the three options displayed on it, in wait.</p>
<p>Corvinus quickly realises what the alien is offering and does some quick thinking, the first option would be preferable, but the Avian is severely damaged, so he does not know if the ship will survive the trip. The second option is a possibility, the aliens seem to want to help and haven't shot him or his people thus far. The third option is an almost no go; the ship won't survive too long on its own, its core could rupture at any moment killing all on board, and who knows if the Turian peacekeeping mission will arrive promptly, never mind go through the newly opened Relay. Indeed, Corvinus realises that he is at this species mercy.</p>
<p>Corvinus thinks through his options a few times, in order to make sure that he is about to pick the right one before pressing the second option on the screen.</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>As the aliens prepare a method to transport his people onto their vessel Corvinus takes his executive officer aside, "Are all computers wiped?" He had given this tasking the moment he found out that the aliens were boarding his vessel.</p>
<p>Rigina, the executive officer blinks, "The computer core is scrambled. I've also ensured any documents are shredded." At this very moment in time, if no help from the council arrives and they somehow managed to repair their ship, the Turians would never be able to find their way back home.</p>
<p>"Good work," Corvinus says before adding. "What about the device?"</p>
<p>"It's hidden, and unless these aliens know what they are looking for, they will miss it."</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>30 mins later</p>
<p>Corvinus looks among his 27 crewmen that are now sitting on an alien vessel in what looks like a small cargo bay. Some of his Turians have brought weapons with them, but the aliens didn't stop them, either for lack of care, or because they didn't know what they were, but Corvinus doubts the latter. The aliens are heavily armed and are bound to know what a firearm looks like, so that means either the aliens have allowed them to keep their weapons out of respect, to prevent any issues, or because they pose no threat to their rescuers, and he hopes it is the former of the three options. Sitting down next to a sailor a small distance away from the Councillor he says, "Tevos, my crew know not to address you as a superior, meaning, unless you give yourself away, these aliens will not discover your true identity."</p>
<p>Tevos looks away as she sees two of their rescuers grab each other by the shoulders, make some sort of comment to one another and then both laugh, or so Tevos presumes. "What do you think of them, Captain?"</p>
<p>Corvinus clicks his talons a little before saying, "We detected no element zero on their vessels or a method of FTL, yet they have weapons that can obliterate ships and cloaking technology that can hide worlds and vessels. They are dangerous and are no strangers to war by any means. But I know what you are asking yourself, are they hostile and Krogan like? I don't think so, Krogan wouldn't have rescued us, instead, they would have killed all seven ships, and they wouldn't use such a structured hierarchy like these seem to do."</p>
<p>"Then it is of my opinion we should establish proper relations, we need to warn them of the peacekeeping fleet inbound, or I fear we may be one peacekeeping fleet down after today."</p>
<p>Corvinus flares his mandibles in agreement, "Yes, but doing so will be tricky, these people do not speak a known language." Because First Contact is so rare, captains in the Turian Navy will only ever receive one lesson on how to proceed with first contact, and it usually follows a night of heavy drinking, meaning it is a lesson most forget.</p>
<p>"You have your omni-tool, yes?" Tevos asks, being more rehearsed in how to deal with first contact situations, having studies all previous first contacts in-depth to assume her current role.</p>
<p>"I do."</p>
<p>"Then we can attempt writing in the Prothean language and see if we can use that as a basis. With any hope, these aliens will have encountered Prothean tech and have a baseline understanding of their language."</p>
<p>"Then we will try it," Corvinus says, "But I do not speak Prothean, nor any of my crew. Will any of the experts?"</p>
<p>Tevos glances over a few of the experts before picking one out, "Matriarch T'soni was our lead Prothean expert on the expedition, she will be your best bet."</p>
<p>Corvinus gives it a few minutes before standing from his seat and approaching the ancient Asari, "Matriarch," He says, "I need you to come with me."</p>
<p>The T'soni accepts the order after pacifying her own guard and approaches the lead alien marine with a greenish mane, and when stood in front of it, Corvinus says to Benezzia, "Write on your omni-tool something in Prothean, anything simple to establish if it understands the language."</p>
<p>Benezzia takes a few moments before tapping out 'The sky blue.' Corvinus then hands the omni-tool to Shepard.</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>Shepard frowns as she accepts the alien's computer, and then she looks to what is typed and her stomach drops, recognising the symbols on the datapad. After swallowing slowly, she raises a hand to her ear and says, "Zero, you reading this?" She fears these Aliens are Protheans.</p>
<p>"We can confirm, but this is good news One Zero Alpha, wait out for a data package."</p>
<p>After around 30 seconds Shepard receives a data-package, downloaded straight into the nano-bot AI in her brain, and just like that, she can read and speak Prothean, the technology that allows her to do this is only in the military domain and is very new. Clearing her throat, she looks to the blue alien, "Yes, the sky is blue, so are the oceans. Do you understand?"</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>Corvinus turns to Benezzia immediately after the alien speaks, but Benezzia is a little lost, "She said something about blue, sky and ocean, I do not recognise the other words." Despite knowing how to write in Prothean, very few audio samples have ever been found, meaning the Citadel species do not know what Prothean sounded like. "But they are obviously acquainted with the language."</p>
<p>"Could they have found some advanced Prothean Stash?" Asks Corvinus since every other known galactic species have discovered Prothean cash's in their home solar system, and this species is advanced.</p>
<p>"Must have," Benezzia concludes, "But if they can speak Prothean so proficiently, why isn't more of their tech-based on Prothean design?" Meaning element zero tech.</p>
<p>Corvinus gives the Turian equivalent of a shrug before telling her, "We can worry about that sometime later. Right now I need you to tell her we need to speak, urgently."</p>
<p>Benezzia nods before beginning to write again on her datapad. Her sentences are not too well-formed, because despite knowing the language, they rarely come across anything that is not a schematic or engineering paper, meaning getting a full grasp of the language and how it is structured is difficult. Most of the technology developed from the beacons have entirely been off the schematics found on them.</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>Shepard looks down to the datapad again and speaks the words, "Need speak, time important." The commander nods before holding a hand out for the aliens writing device as she is not sure the alien can speak the language, only write in it.</p>
<p>After some hesitation from the alien Shepard gets the device and begins to type, "Then speak." She also corrects the previous sentence so it reads, 'Need to speak, time is of the utmost importance.' Then she hands the device back.</p>
<p>Benezzia quickly takes the omni-tool and reads what is written before saying, "Goddess, she has corrected my previous sentence using what I assume to be conjunctions and prepositions. This species knows the language well. She also says 'then speak'."</p>
<p>Corvinus suppresses a concerned growl before telling her, "Tell her a friendly fleet is inbound. Time unknown but soon."</p>
<p>Benezzia takes a moment to consider what she will say before blinking and typing, 'Friendship find here, tall number, day, tomorrow.'</p>
<p>Shepard considers the text before taking the device back and typing, 'Your friends or your enemies?'</p>
<p>Benezzia squints at her device before realising what is being said, she speaks to Corvinus as she types, 'I friends.' and says, "She wants clarification as to if the fleet is ours or the Hanar's."</p>
<p>After getting the omni-tool back Shepard reads it, types 'Acknowledged' and then raises a hand to her ear, and says in her native tongue, "Zero, the aliens seem to be trying to tell me they have friendlies inbound. Maybe in a day or two. For further details, wait out."</p>
<p>There is a moment till a voice tells her, "Roger that One Zero Alpha. Out."</p>
<p>Shepard then looks to the alien and gestures for the omni-tool, and upon receiving it she writes, 'How many friends?'</p>
<p>Benezzia reads it aloud, prompting Corvinus to say, "Tell her 30 ships, one dreadnought."</p>
<p>Typically the Turian would not reveal this information to keep operation security, but considering these people have very likely saved his peoples lives, and have some sort of directed energy weapon in orbit of their planet, he will spare some information. He is also willing to share as it can help make positive relations between his own and this new species.</p>
<p>Getting the datapad back, Shepard reads, "30. 1 ship tall, tall guns, much armour."</p>
<p>Shepard nods in partial understanding, knowing it to mean that there will be 30 normal ships and one larger full-blown warship, or 29 normal ships and one full-blown warship. Before she can reply a voice comes over the ship's intercom, "Guests and foreheads, we are about to dock with SB1. Shepard, some bigwigs are waiting for you at the dock." SB1 stands for Star Base 1 and is what the International Space Station was before the military consumed it and developed it into a zero-gravity training wing and then a military space dock. Today it has very little left of the original ISS other than a small compartment that acts as a memorial for all those who served and died on missions to the ISS.</p>
<p>Getting the omni-tool back, Shepard quickly writes, 'Prepare to move.' Before pulling herself onto her feet and making her way to the airlock. At the airlock, she finds her brother awaiting her, "So, thoughts?" She asks him.</p>
<p>"Trust you to find the green space babes of the galaxy."</p>
<p>"Really?" Lidochka states, "We find aliens, and the first thing you think of is getting laid? Your such a spacey its not even funny anymore."</p>
<p>As the airlock hisses open the Leonid Shepard asks her, "So your not even a little bit interested?"</p>
<p>With a shake of her head Lidochka Shepard moves down the dock to stop in front of a general. After whacking up a crisp salute and receiving a one back, the General asks her, "You have established comms?"</p>
<p>Shepard nods, "Text only, they can write Prothean, but their speech is questionable."</p>
<p>"It will do, good job. How many ET's have you rescued?"</p>
<p>"26." Shepard tells him, "I've let a few keep their weapons to keep things calm and to make them feel somewhat secure. I know in a role reversal I would want a little something in case shit hits the fan."</p>
<p>The general nods in understanding, "I would have done the same. Now, because the aliens know you and your team, you guys are going to be providing a security detail for the aliens, this is very much a roll as it comes type of assignment. Understood?"</p>
<p>Ladochka Shepard nods, this means that for as long as the aliens are around, then so is her team, and who knows how long this will be, or what things will be required of her team over this period. "Crystal clear."</p>
<p>"Excellent. So, who is the alien leader?"</p>
<p>"Spikey alien 1." Shepard says as she gestures for Corvinus and Benezzia to join her, "He uses the blue woman to talk in Prothean."</p>
<p>"So no species name established yet then."</p>
<p>No."</p>
<p>The General takes a moment before nodding, "Anything else I should know?"</p>
<p>Shepard nods, "Yeah. If these aliens are anything like Humans, I would say they are exhausted and have probably been run ragged for a good while. Half of them passed out almost the moment they got on our ship, which is impressive considering their situation, and the rest just scream exhausted from their demeanour. I would suggest getting them somewhere to sleep safely would be a good start to relations."</p>
<p>The General nods, "I appreciate your analysis of the situation. We are currently looking to establish good relations with these ET's so little snippets of information like this will help a long way."</p>
<p>/.../</p>
<p>Corvinus watches the green mane marine and gets the hint when the woman beckons for himself to join her, and knowing he needs Benezzia to talk with these new aliens, he brings the Asari with him.</p>
<p>Getting in front of the general Corvinus does something unexpected, as he witnessed the exchange of salutes between the one with the green mane and the new man he figures that his own species and this new one is much alike. So, he shows the General a Turian salute, that being a fist to his heart.</p>
<p>The General looks caught off guard before saying something in Prothean. He does not recognise what is said, but Benezzia does.</p>
<p>"He says, welcome to Sol." Sol could be many things, from the starbase they are currently on to the solar system they are in, to even the planet below. What sol is, however, is unimportant, the welcoming is the crucial bit.</p>
<p>After a few more words are exchanged, it comes apparent the General is inviting them to a more comfortable room to speak in, and so the Captain accepts the offer. Eventually, the aliens are led to a comfortable room that has been set aside for them, inside there is a collection of fresh fruit, water and a few comfortable sofa's. The rooms main purpose is that of a holding pen or a communal area, and it was set up in haste when it was realised the aliens would be coming back onto SB1.</p>
<p>As the many aliens begin to find a chair to rest in the General pulls Shepard aside, "Keep the aliens here Shepard; hopefully, this next bit won't take too long." After speaking with Shepard, the General then leaves with the room with the lead alien, the second blue alien and two guards.</p>
<p>Finding a food synthesiser in the room Shepard approaches it and says, "Large Latte," and almost instantly the machine creates the drink from seemingly thin air, the only part the machine did not make is the ceramic cup. Taking her drink, she approaches a seat with a good view of both entrances and exits of the room and plonks herself down.</p>
<p>Looking around the aliens, she makes a few observations, of the 26 aliens there are 6 blue ones, and these aliens are almost all passed out or passing out, with only one blue alien actually being in a conscious state. It really did surprise her when she came across these all too human-looking aliens, but she isn't complaining, they are easy on the eyes compared to somethings science fiction has imagined in the past.</p>
<p>The spikey aliens are the most numerous of all the aliens, with there being 18 of them, and these are more like what she imagined aliens would look like. They have different eye structures, unusual hard looking skin, strange spikes coming from their heads and weird legs. These aliens are also what Shepard imagines are the fighters, they seem slightly more alert, more organised and are respecting some sort of hierarchy more than the other aliens. The third species, nicknamed 'Horns' is almost too sci-fi looking with their big black eyes, pale skin, and short complexion, it is like they are playing to some sort of stereotype alien from the early 21st century. She also notices what looks like a guarded show of respect to one of the blue aliens, but at this moment, Shepard is not too sure why.</p>
<p>It is not long until the General returns, and Shepard has her next task.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Welcome to Sol</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>As the Avian's crew get settled in on a Human space station, a Turian peacekeeping fleet bears down on Earth. Will cooler heads prevail?</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Cheers for the review Anonleous. Hope you enjoy this one!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Shortly, spikey alien 1 and the blue woman returns with the General, prompting Shepard to stand with her half-consumed coffee and approach. As she walks to the General's location, Shepard can see that the man is having some fundamental conversations with the blue alien in Prothean, who then relays it in another language to Spikes.</p><p>Before greeting Shepard the General takes a look around the room, and he can't help but notice the fact that most of the aliens are either sleeping or attempting to stay awake. "Shepard," The General then greets her, "The mess managers have cleared 38 rooms in the Commodus Officers Mess. Get them bedded in." This order probably means the rooms have now been fitted with cameras and recording equipment in order to see what they can learn from the aliens when they think they are not being watched. Really, the act of installing all the equipment is a little creepy, but Shepard understands the need for it considering the circumstances.</p><p>"Any hopes of a translation software?" Shepard asks with little hope before taking the task on.</p><p>"None yet. Best we can do at the moment is to let the computers and language experts observe them speaking in their native tongue." The General looks like he is about to finish speaking, but then he adds on, "Oh, and move some of your guys into the extra rooms. See what you can learn by living next to them for the duration of their stay, as well as providing a security buffer."</p><p>"Roger that. If you don't have anything else for myself or my team, I'll take them to their rooms now."</p><p>"By all means," The General says as he lets her go.</p><p>Soon, Shepard has a few aliens crowded into one of the rooms that has been set aside for them, "Blue is cold water, red is hot water." She tells the blue alien who understands Prothean, "Blue is also drinking water. If you need heating, press this button up, or air conditioning this button down."</p><p>These details may all seem like very basic things to a human, common knowledge even, but Shepard has to treat the aliens like they have never seen a studio style apartment in their lives before today. "And, these switches turn the lights on and off. Do not put your fingers in these plugs, you will get frazzled by 5 kilo-Amps of raw electrical power." Next, Shepard comes across the food synthesiser, "This will make you snacks, scroll the screen and select an item like so." Shepard hits a button, causing an almost blinding light to be generated underneath the display. The marine then takes the Strawberry Crush Icecream that was generated in the blinding light and hands it to one of the blue aliens.</p><p>Shepard scans around the room before nodding to herself, that should be everything. "Alright, that is everything you need to know about your rooms, this entire corridor has been assigned to your people and a few of my platoon, 1 room per person. If you need me, I am in room..." Shepard stops herself just short of saying 37, knowing the aliens will not know how to read human numbers, so instead, she says, "The last door on the left. Now, go and back brief your blokes."</p><p>As the aliens leave Shepard ponders just how much of that the blue alien actually understood and was capable of relaying onto the others, she also wonders if she should have reiterated a point or two like not putting one's fingers into a power socket.</p><p>/.../</p><p>In an hours time, all is quiet in the officer's mess with the only sound being of Shepard and seven of her platoon members cleaning their weapons in the corridor. Unbeknown to most, space is actually rather harsh to weapons, the vacuum of space boils away the moisture used in the oils that help keep a firearm lubricated, and leaves behind a solidified dirt which can cause jams and internal damage. The reason they clean their weapons together in the corridor is that as simple as it sounds, the mundane task is a team building activity.</p><p>"Spook inbound, boss," Ashley says, prompting Shepard to look up towards the entrance of the mess. Sure enough, there is a thin man with an intelligence insignia on his arm allowing himself inside. Shepard figured her team would be visited sooner or later by someone from the intelligence community.</p><p>"PMR?" She asks as she continues to clean her own weapon.</p><p>"Yes, we need to debrief you." As the man says 'you' he looks around all of Shepard's men, letting them know that this is a group event.</p><p>Shepard nods before gesturing to a spot on the floor, "Then pull a chair up, should be one available in the room behind me."</p><p>The man does as asked and begins his interrogation of her team, "I'm not here for your typical post-mission report," He tells them, "Instead, I want to know about the alien craft and its occupants. What I am looking for is anything that can tell us about them, how the ship was designed internally, how it operated, what did you notice about the aliens, how were they operating."</p><p>"Slow down big man," Shepard says as she pulls out a new tool from her rifle cleaning kit and begins to use it, "One thing at a time."</p><p>The man takes a moment to pause before looking down to a notepad and asking, "How was the ship internally designed..."</p><p>"You have the video footage," Kaiden tells him as if it holds all his answers.</p><p>The man nods, "Yes, but the footage only shows so much, I want you to tell me what you saw, what your opinions of it were, and how it made you feel."</p><p>Vega raises an eyebrow at that last bit, "How it made me feel? Like did it make me feel like going out and having a steak or..."</p><p>"James, you always want a steak," Ashley tells him in jest, "I would be more concerned if it made you stop wanting to eat."</p><p>"Please," The slim man tells Shepard's group, obviously not amused by their banter, "It is important I get these opinions so we can try and deduce more on how the aliens operate, and surely I do not need to tell you how important that is."</p><p>"Alright," Shepard says to her group, "Let's stop getting his knickers in a twist."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Intelligence Room 042 - Star Base 1</p><p>A man looks across a few of the screens in front of him, "So," He then asks a few in the room, "Anything interesting on TV tonight?"</p><p>One of the men in the room nods, "Sure, channel five recently had some good stuff on it."</p><p>The first man looks to a screen that is labelled 'Room 5' before approaching it and rewinding the footage. Soon, the man is watching as an Asari strips from her oily clothes and climbs into bed, "Huh," The man says, "This will keep most men happy." The Asari has more than a few human features.</p><p>"Yeah, happy indeed. We have also noticed a few other things, got it all in this notepad." After saying 'notepad,' the man holds up an A4 notepad and waves it slightly in the air.</p><p>The man approaches the second and takes the notepad from his hand. Sitting down in a nearby chair he starts to flick through the pages. "Spikes sleep with their weapons in their bed...No surprise there, in unknown territory and will likely have been drilled to sleep with weapons." The man flicks through a few other uninteresting facts like one or two of the Blue aliens were sleeping in the same room, "Horns used their 'glowing gizzmo' to either take pictures of or scan most of room?" The man looks up from the notepad, "Glowing gizzmo?" He asks, looking for further information.</p><p>"Don't know how best to describe it other than a holographic device of some kind. The device is projected by a bracelet worn on the right hand, and most of the aliens are wearing one of these bracelets."</p><p>"Interesting." The man says before burying his nose once more in the pages of the notepad. Eventually, he starts reading aloud again, "Alien leader and blue alien 1 regularly speak with blue alien 2?"</p><p>"Yeah," The second man says, "Noticed it the second we had eyes on, it is potentially someone of interest so we have been keeping an eye on it, and so far I think blue alien 2 is someone they are trying to hide."</p><p>"I see," The man says with some thought before once more going back to the notepad. "Great interest in the food synthesiser?"</p><p>"All of the aliens have shown great interest in it. Some of them just kept making random things, but not eating it, others have tried a few things, but seem more interested in the synthesiser itself. Looks to me like they have never seen one."</p><p>"You would think a FTL capable species would have come across a synthesiser."</p><p>"Well, that's just what we observed."</p><p>The first man shrugs before going back to the notepad, and eventually, he says, "The Spikes are only drinking water?"</p><p>"Yes. The Blue's and Horns have eaten a few of the fruits in the anteroom and tried some food produced by the synthesisers, but the spikes are yet to eat anything."</p><p>"Hmm," The man thinks before standing and handing the man his notepad back, "Excellent observations so far, keep up the good work."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Commodus Officer's Mess</p><p>The man with the intelligence logo on his arm spends a good hour interrogating Shepard and crews memory, where the group tell of everything they figured was important, including Shepard hunch that one of the blue aliens is someone of significance. Just before the slim man finishes his interrogation of the group Shepard turns her head to where a red light has begun to flash, and very quickly a voice comes over the space stations internal intercom, "All hands man battle stations. This is not a drill."</p><p>"Here comes that fleet spikes was telling us of." Shepard concludes as she and her comrades jump to their feet.</p><p>/.../</p><p>T-5 mins - Hierarchy War Vessel Accipitridae - Dreadnought.</p><p>Fleet Commander Rouse Quirinus is nothing but an experienced military man, having spent the vast majority of his long life on war vessels of one sort or another once he spread his wings and left Palavern. Many argue that in his grand age of 89 Palavern years that he should retire from active front line service and take up a position in Naval Headquarters, advising the politicians on what their fleets can and can not do. It would be a job well within Quirinus capabilities, in fact, it is widely recognised that he would excel in it, but the man would find little to no fun in it, and this is something he knows. Quirinus loves the thrill peacekeeping can give him, the challenges of capturing emboldened pirates, and the risk of just living in the most hostile environment known to Turians, other than the middle of the ocean of course. There is little about peacekeeping Quirinus does not enjoy other than those dark days where he loses men or when politics gets involved with his missions.</p><p>Eyeing the newly opened Relay that the Avian has fled through Quirinus takes a moment to think, he does not know what lies in wait at the far side, he could make an assumption, but assumptions are known to be the mother of all fuck-ups. In this particular situation, Quirinus knows he should send through a recce party of two or three ships, to make sure the waters are safe, so to speak, but this mission requires getting to the Avian's aid as soon as Turianly possible, so time-saving measures need to be taken when and where possible. Had the Avian not been carrying the Asari Councillor and a 'Priority 1 level artefact,' Quirinus would follow protocol and send the recce, but today, the protocol is out the proverbial window. To combat this lack of time, Quirinus has made and delivered a diverse set of orders that encompass the most likely set of discoveries, and the most dangerous set of discoveries, that way, people should know how to act if any situation arises across a broad spectrum of possible situations. The most dangerous discovery, of course, is a new hostile species equivalent to the Rachni.</p><p>Looking out his dreadnoughts forward observation window Quirinus sees what looks like the last ship to assume its position in the fleet, prompting him to ask aloud, "Fleet Orchestrator, has the assigned disposition been assumed?" The Fleet Orchestrators job is to ensure that everyone in the fleet is where they are supposed to be.</p><p>"It has, Fleet Commander."</p><p>"Then initiate phase 2, take us through the uncharted relay."</p><p>"As you command."</p><p>Slowly the fleet of 31 vessels begin to approach the relay and Prothean megastructure begins to toss the ships across the galaxy at unfathomable speeds. 31 Vessels is a typical number of ships in a Turian fleet because in Turian mythology, 31 is a lucky number, but it is also used because a Turian Fleet Commander will struggle to use any more than 31 vessels effectively.</p><p>Arriving in a new and unmapped system mere seconds after entering the Relay corridor Quirinus allows for a few moments in order to allow the helmsman to rapidly jump 10,000km away from the relay, in order to make his vessel a hard target should anyone be aiming at the relay exit point. This small time period also allows people to do some work before he asks, "System breakdown." This request should surprise none of his officers.</p><p>The officer responsible for intelligence answers his Commanding Officer first, "Avian emergency broadcast system detected at pushed co-ords, I can not ascertain the condition of the ship at this location. Additionally, Unidentified Satellite in orbit of the relay has been detected, it lacks markers to signal its creator."</p><p>Friend Foe Identification officer speaks next, "No additional blue, red, green, orange or black forces on Ladar." Blue forces are friendly forces, red are enemy, green is civilian, orange is for people who are neither enemy, nor friends, and black is criminal networks.</p><p>The signals officer is the next to answers Quirinus, "No artificial signals identified outside of the Avians distress call, the system is quiet. The Relay is accepting and transmitting our communications to HQ. Time for messages to reach HQ is 27 hours 13"</p><p>Finally, the Combat Terrain officer speaks, "System has 4 planets, 3 of which are gas giants, and the forth is a category 3 dwarf planet. Star is a G2V Main sequence star. Solar system is aligned at 63 degrees to galaxies plane, no additional relays detected."</p><p>Quirinus takes a second to process all this information and make some deductions before saying aloud, "The Avian was being chased by 6 Hanar Whirlpools and was carrying battle damage, meaning I do not for one second believe the Avian destroyed all six Hanar vessels." Hanar vessels may not have the weaponry of a Turian vessel or the shields of an Asari warship, but traditionally Hanar vessels have more than respectable armour and hull designs, allowing them to take a stern beating most Turian vessels would be outright destroyed in.</p><p>The Friend Foe Officer speaks in response to his commanding officer, "We have nothing on sensors, sir."</p><p>Quirinus clucks his tongue in thought before turning to look at a screen which has the local system broken down into its component parts, "The Gas Giants, what are their main atmospheric elements?"</p><p>"Hydrogen, Helium and traces of Methane."</p><p>Quirinus thinks for a moment, Hanar vessels can enter very dense atmospheres that most citadel vessels would be crushed in, and can even operate under oceans as sea fairing vessels, which in itself is an amazing technological feat. Quirinus knows from experience that the Hanar can and do use their unique hulls to hide from Turian sensors in thick atmospheres such as those found in gas giants or deep oceans. With this in mind, the Fleet Commander issues a set of quick battle orders, "On each Gas Giant, I want a sentry doing constant surveillance, if the Hanar are hiding in them then I want them found. Formation C is to guard the relay in order to prevent escape from this system, a further tasking is to study the unidentified satellite. The rest of our battle group are to proceed to the Avian at maximum fleet velocity."</p><p>/.../</p><p>UNSC</p><p>A General studies a screen with great interest, the fleet he was warned of has eventually shown itself, and he can't help but admire the predatory design of the Turian vessels. To the General, they scream of power, danger, and the will to fight.</p><p>"What do you make of them?"</p><p>The General can not really say too much on the design of the vessels other than highlight the huge cannon on the dreadnought, this is because he simply does not know enough about how their tech works to make any assumptions. However, the general can talk about some of the tactics he has seen, "In short, experienced and drilled. The hard targetting out of the relay was unseen by any of the previous ships, and it is a tactic our troops use that was developed over hundreds of years of war in urban environments meaning I assume these too know of war, further, the fleet formation is tightly controlled. Their whole formation reminds me a lot of how an Aircraft Carrier once roamed the sea's with its escort, so I would assume they also have a stealth vessel or two somewhere we are yet to discover. So, to answer your question, we are not dealing with pirates here but a drilled military."</p><p>The President nods before turning to a woman in the room, "Cerberus, how are your preparations?"</p><p>The woman in command of Cerberus looks up from the screen showing the Turian ships and to the President, "As we speak defences are being re-located to suitable locations, but our main effort has been achieved."</p><p>"Excellent." The President says before asking, "Have we made any more progress in establishing a method to communicate with the new fleet?" When it was learned a fleet would be coming, it very quickly became apparent that a method of communicating would need to be found. The Turian captain when asked had tried to give some insight and direction but was unable to help past providing some insight into how the ships communicated using light at a certain frequency as a means of sending data. Part of the problem for the limited help was the fact the Prothean language was not easy for the Turian to express exactly what he meant.</p><p>"We are going to start by broadcasting a simple pattern in the EM spectrum. The turian mentioned 9.3 Ghz so we will start there."</p><p>This causes all eyes to look at the man responsible for establishing communications. "You mean like in that old film? You have to be jesting me."</p><p>"I'm open to suggestions." The man hits back.</p><p>The room enters a small silence till a knock is heard on the door of the room, followed by Shepard entering with the blue alien and the Turian Captain.</p><p>/.../</p><p>HWV Accipitridae</p><p>As the fleet begins its approach towards the Avian Quirinus begins to think some more, why did the Avian find itself where it is right now, as in why did it head in the direction it has. After a few minutes of travelling the Combat Terrain Officer says, "Sensors have detected a second Dwarf Planet. Category 2." Cat 2 means the dwarf planet is in the solar systems Goldilocks zone, meaning it could harbour life and liquid water.</p><p>Turning the Fleet Commander looks once more to the solar systems break down before asking, "What is the atmosphere of this dwarf planet?"</p><p>The Combat Terrain officer replies, "None detected, it's just a small dwarf planet barely larger than a moon." Unlike on the Avian, with a Salarian sensor expert and some of the most modern sensors, the combat terrain officer fails to notice anything wrong with the small dwarf planet and its dubious gravity well.</p><p>Quirinus knows the Avian will have better sensors than his own fleet, so he asks, "Then why did the Avian head towards this dwarf planet? Do we have visuals?"</p><p>"Not yet, Sir. I deduce that there must be a fine dust cloud in between ourselves and the planet preventing a clear image."</p><p>After five minutes a zoomed in visual is available of the planet and Quirinus spends many long minutes studying the image. The world is evidently occupied, and by an advanced species if the phenomenal ringworld in orbit of the planet says anything. Turning to the Combat Terrain officer, the Fleet Commander says, "This does not look like a Dwarf Planet, and it most certainly has an atmosphere, not to mention unknown habitants."</p><p>Turning to the Identify Friend Foe officer, Quirinus asks, "Any unidentified vessels on LADAR?"</p><p>"Negative, Sir."</p><p>"Well, I doubt that a species capable of building a ringworld like that lacks a navy." Quirinus spends another minute collecting his thoughts before speaking again, "Fleet Orchestrator, assume formation B3, and raise the threat level to 4. Rules of engagement are to reduce to Omega. Communications, attempt to hail the Avian." Under these rules of Engagement, the Turian fleet can actively defend itself; however, it is not allowed to destroy hostile vessels outright, instead, they are to cripple if possible.</p><p>As the Turian speaks, because of the increase of threat level, thick steel composite shutters slowly lower into positions over windows, adding a little extra protection to the ships weak points. The shutters contrary to popular belief, aren't to protect from direct shots; instead, they are for protection against fast moving shrapnel from other damaged vessels.</p><p>/.../</p><p>UNSC</p><p>A man sat behind a computer screen speak aloud, "Sir, detecting a large surge of power in all vessels." As the man says this steel shutters can also be seen to lower over Turian windows.</p><p>A general turns to the Asari looking for an explanation, and eventually, after consulting with Corvinus, he tells her, "They have assumed formation B3, and I suspect at the sight of your world, they have also raised the threat level to 3 or 4, resulting in the lowered window shutters. This means their shields are powered and weapons are pre-loaded. We need to contact them now before anything else happens." Benezzia then translates this the best she can to the General.</p><p>"We have been trying." Someone tells her.</p><p>Corvinus flares his mandibles downwards a bit when Benezzia tells him this, a Turian nod, before saying to her, "The Avain had Salarian sensors, meaning the best we have, and we still struggled to see their world because of whatever cloaking tech they are using. I suspect the signal is still too weak for them to detect through this cloaking technology." Benezzia once more translates this to the best of her capabilities.</p><p>The General nods after recieving some explanation from the blue alien, "Then we up the power." A simple solution, so one would think.</p><p>/.../</p><p>HWV Accipitridae</p><p>By now Quirinus fleet is 350,000km away from the unidentified planet, and only 15,000km away from the battle damaged Avian. On the planet, megacities can be seen that make Illium look small, and the Ringworld above the planet only looks that much more substantial and intimidating now Quirinus knows its circumference is 5,000 km.</p><p>"Fleet Commander, I have compiled a report on the Avians Status. We have also discovered 5 Whirlpools..."</p><p>Quirinus flares his one mandible a little before turning to look at the officer who spoke, "Whirlpool status?"</p><p>"KIA. Showing a visual now." Soon an image of a whirlpool is on screen, however, it can not be easily identified as such due to its extreme hull disfigurement. "All five whirlpools feature similar disfigurement Sir, this is the least disfigured."</p><p>The Turian brings a hand to the bottom of his jaw at the sight, showing his deep thought. These Whirlpools look like they have been within extreme proximity to a star, but how on good Plavern did they end up like that here? Thinking through the possible answers to this question Quirinus comes to the most likely answer, "Turians," He says after a moment, "It would appear like these waters have bigger fish than these Whirlpools. Our mission has come more complex than initially thought." Turning to his intelligence officer he asks, "What is the condition of the Avian?"</p><p>"Mission killed, Sir. Battle damage would indicate it has taken a direct shot from a Super Heated Tungsten round."</p><p>"Crew?"</p><p>"No life signs detected."</p><p>Quirinus looks to the floor for a moment before looking back up, "Send a party to board with the Avian, we will not assume all hands are lost till we can confirm it with boots on the ground."</p><p>"As you command."</p><p>"Fleet Orchestrator, alert all vessels to regroup, once we have confirmed the condition of the Avians crew I intend on advancing to this new world. Comms, find me the protocol for initiating first contact." Had the Avian not carried the Councillor Quirinus would have advanced on the alien world immediately. "Also, we are still one Whirlpool down, so we are to maintain our original goal of apprehending all Hanar assailants till we know of their fate."</p><p>It takes half an hour to get some boots on the Avian, and soon Quirinus is hearing a report from the men he sent aboard. "Sir, this place is all but evacuated, only a few dead bodies left in the medical bay. Additionally, the computer cores are scrambled, without a doubt this ship has gone under an electronics purge. We have also reclaimed the level 1 artefact, it was hidden under the floorboards." A typical Turian hiding location.</p><p>"Is there any signs of forced boarding? Any sign of the Councillor?" If there was forced entry it would be unmistakable, not only from firearm damage but from fortifications made, doors welded shut, barricades and bloodstained walls.</p><p>"Fortifications look like they were started in some key locations but never finished, so to me, it looks like it was abandoned by choice. No sign of the Councillor, but we are yet to check the bridge."</p><p>"Understood. When you arrive on the bridge endeavour to find if the Captain left a log behind. If needed, use council authorisation codes to access any locked electronics." Quirinus knows that if possible, the captain would have left some sort of log to say why he abandoned the ship and where his people have gone - it is common procedure among all space fairing vessels to do so, in order so that any rescue vessels can find the crew.</p><p>Sure enough, after a bit of searching his men onboard the Avian find something. "Sir, we found council encrypted video in the captain's chair, uploading it now."</p><p>After a few seconds Quirinus is looking at a video, showing the Captain of the Avian if the rank slide says anything.</p><p>"To whoever is watching this, this is my last log as captain of the CV Avian. My vessel has taken heavy damage from Hanar Whirlpools and needs to be evacuated. I have given the order for my crew and all! Asari workers to join our new alien friends on their stealth vessel. I made this choice freely and was not coerced into making such a choice. Like how Xiavia was forced to flee to higher ground when the oceans rose, I suppose." This last little bit refers to a well known Turian story from the history books regarding how a city was required to flee an impending tsunami. It is only a story Turians would really know, and it goes to tell Quirinus that the captain is actually making his decision to evacuate through his own choice. "As far as I know, my people are to head back to their world, the third planet in this solar system, but we are yet to establish any proper means of communication. I should inform any Citadel affiliated vessel, however, that they are being watched, and are in the range of powerful weapons. We do not know the weapons nature, only their power, and they are capable of eliminating Hanar Whirlpools with a single shot.</p><p>Spirits providing, this is helpful information, and I shall see my family soon. Spirits be with you."</p><p>Quirinus clucks his tongue twice, he now knows this new species has stealth vessels and some incredibly powerful weaponry to boot. Tapping a button Quirinus speaks to the away team, "Good work retrieving the artefact Captain. Get it and yourself back onto my vessel." After cutting the comm line to the boarding party Quirinus takes a small relieved breath, small hope building within him that the Avians crew may still be alive.</p><p>Soon, the away team are back onboard their vessel and the Fleet Commander gives permission for the fleet to begin its advance onto the new world.</p><p>/.../</p><p>UNSC</p><p>"Distance, 300,000km. Still no response to hails."</p><p>The president pulls a hand down his face, he can not let such a powerful fleet so close to Earth, yet at the same time, he can not do something provocative. "We have suggestion." The Asari speaks to him.</p><p>The president looks to the blue alien, "Please go ahead." The Asari and Turian are allowed in the room to provide insight on the Turian fleet.</p><p>"Captain Corvinius tells shot across ship bow, no closer 50,000km. Turian ships stop."</p><p>A General hearing this frowns, "Doing so would give away the fact we have defensive platforms around Earth."</p><p>"We can do it from the moon. Less collateral if it goes wrong."</p><p>The president takes a second before nodding. "Do it."</p><p>/.../</p><p>HWV Accipitridae</p><p>"Detecting power surge from planets moon." Someone cries out in order to alert Quirinus.</p><p>A second later before Quirinus could say anything another Turian shouts, "Some sort of shot has just passed our bow. Maybe plasma, or some superheated gas. Distance 78,000 km."</p><p>"All ships halt in place." Quirinus quickly says, "That was a warning shot if I ever did see one. Comms, do we still not have anything?"</p><p>"Nothing yet, Fleet Commander."</p><p>Quirinus walks back and forth on his bridge for a minute, thinking. He knows that this species is capable of reason and thought, they would not have offered to rescue those on the Avian if they were not. He spends half an hour thinking, and with still no comms established he says, "Fleet Orchestrator, send the Goshawk forward 25,000km."</p><p>/.../</p><p>UNSC</p><p>The president is starting to get annoyed if he was honest, the Turian fleet is either ignoring the signals being sent to them or have not realised they are being sent a signal. For this reason, the Hawkings has been dispatched to rebroadcast the signal in space so that the signal is unmissable.</p><p>Seeing a ship move forward out of the Turian fleet the president leans forward. "What if we can convince this one ship to come here?" He asks.</p><p>"It would solve a lot of problems." A General tells him, before looking to the Asari in the room, "How would we convince that ship to follow one of ours?"</p><p>The blue alien and the spikey alien talk for some time between themselves before the Asari responds to the General. "Ship fly in circle," She walks to the screen that has the Turian fleet on and draws her finger around the forward Turian ship, "Then fly here." She finishes by pointing to the ground.</p><p>The president spends a minute before nodding, "I like it. Tell the Hawkings."</p><p>/.../</p><p>HWV Accipitridae</p><p>By now, it has been an hour since the warning shot across the bow of the ship, and Quirinus is beginning to wonder if they are looking at this the wrong way. The civilisation in front of them is obviously advanced, the ringworld speaks for this, so maybe these people don't use light as a means of communication anymore, and maybe they aren't looking for his own comms. A good way of thinking about it is if he was asked to send a message he would send a message over light based comms, but a Turian a thousand years back would send a man on foot to the where the message needs to be delivered. Maybe, in this circumstance, he is the Turian searching for the messenger that was sent on foot, and this civilisation is looking for the light signal.</p><p>As Quirinus muses to himself he hears some one call out, "Fleet Commander, Unidentified stealth vessel detected 50,000km to the bow."</p><p>"On screen." There is only one species that vessel can belong to, the Turian thinks.</p><p>Soon, there is an image of a small stealth vessel on a viewing screen, and Quirinus watches as it slowly approaches and circles the forward vessel twice before stopping in front of it and slowly moving back towards the planet just in front of his fleet. "Fleet Orchestrator, have the Goshawk follow that vessel."</p><p>"As you command."</p><p>Over the next five minutes, Quirinus watches with great interest and concern as the Goshawk follows the stealth vessel. Usually, he would not allow a single vessel to get so separated from his fleet when there are unknowns such as stealth vessels, but when a new civilisation is discovered, some usual protocol needs to be discarded for a successful first contact, or so he thinks. "Fleet Commander, we have lost comms with the Goshawk."</p><p>The Turian leader turns to face comms, "Technical issues?"</p><p>"Don't think so, their signal power dropped over the last five seconds substantially, it is more like they are being blocked."</p><p>Quirinus does not like this one bit, and alarm bells are ringing inside his head, "Do we still have comms with the rest of the fleet?"</p><p>"Yes."</p><p>Quirinus walks back and forth a bit before saying, "Send a comms buoy forward 50,000km to relay our messages forward."</p><p>"As you command."</p><p>/.../</p><p>UNSC</p><p>Corvinius was trying his best to calm the room, these humans did not seem to appreciate the comms buoy that the fleet in orbit dispatched, "Communications relay." He tells them. "Communications relay."</p><p>It is then that a man in the room asks, "If they use light-based comms, will it be able to penetrate our EM shielding?" The EM shields have been in operation for hundreds of years, its purpose is to protect Earth from solar flares. Its need became apparent after a solar flare in the year 2284 wiped out half the electronics on Earth, which directly resulted in millions of deaths. The day is known as the darkest day in human history, not only due to the massive amounts of death but also because of how humanity plummeted into darkness as electric circuits failed.</p><p>This causes a few in the room to stop doing what they are doing and eventually one says, "Never thought of that." Because the EM shielding has been around for so long and does not actively play a part in protecting Earth from hostile intent, many in the room often forget the EM shield even exists. To most, the EM shield is just a bit of infrastructure they never see, like the vast servers that allow the internet to operate or the water processing plants that turn sewage water into safe clean water that is safe to put back into the ocean.</p><p>"Can we turn it off?" Asks the president.</p><p>"No, at least I don't think so. I've never heard of it being turned off." Turning the General who just spoke asks another man, "Have you ever heard of the EM shield being turned off?"</p><p>"Can't say I have."</p><p>The President looks at the men for a moment before saying, "Do you have Google on your phones?"</p><p>The men spend a minute googling before someone begins to read off their phone, "The Global Electromagnetic Shield was designed to never be shut down. The system incorporates enough redundancy that numerous generators can be individually shut down for maintenance, which will result in additional generators in the system stepping up to temporarily cover the power loss of these generators."</p><p>The man scrolls down on his phone before reading some more, "The EM shield was not designed to be shut down.." The man then scratches his nose before adding, "This was written in the year 2876."</p><p>The president raises a brow before saying, "It appears the EM shield has been seriously neglected. Someone find me an expert who can give us an answer in case our latest plan falls through."</p><p>/.../</p><p>HWV Accipitridae</p><p>"Fleet Commander, we have re-established communications with the Goshawk."</p><p>Quirinus flares a mandible slightly, relieved to hear that he now has comms with his away ship. "Excellent. If we start to lose comms again, send another comm buoy 50,000km past the first comms buoy to rebroadcast the first comms buoy."</p><p>"As you command."</p><p>For the next half an hour nothing happens, the Stealth ship just continues to guide the Goshawk to a relatively small space station above the planet. As the Goshawk gets closer to the space station it comes evident that the ship will be required to dock, but the docks do not appear to be compatible with the Goshawk. "Fleet Commander, the Captain of the Goshawk is going to land in the space station on a shuttlecraft."</p><p>At the moment, there are 5 comm buoys relaying the messages to and from the Goshawk. Whatever shield or electronic warfare is in operation above the planet, it is impressing Quirinus.. "Understood."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Captain Remus of the Goshawk looks across the ten men in the shuttlecraft with him, they are all good men that have served on his scout vessel for numerous years. "Ready to meet a new species?" He asks them with some cheer in his voice as he feels the shuttlecraft land on the alien space station.</p><p>"As long as they don't shoot at us." One man quips back to Remus.</p><p>"If they do, just remember your training and all will go well, that and the dreadnought Quirinus has aimed at this station." Standing Remus makes his way to the shuttlecrafts door, "But, are you ready to live forever?"</p><p>"Sir?" One of his subbies asks with a flare of his mandibles.</p><p>"Were about to meet a new species Consus, our names will go in the history books." With that said the Captain presses a button on his Omni-tool and says, "Goshawk, we are about to disembark the shuttlecraft." Despite having a camera on his armour that is being streamed back to the Goshawk, and then back to the Accipitridae, Remus tells them what he is doing out of habit. After receiving confirmation his message was heard he hits a button on the wall next to him and the door slowly opens.</p><p>When the door is fully opened it quickly comes clear to Remus that he is not going to be going down in any history books today, a Turian and an Asari stood by a new unidentified group of aliens will take that glory. Stepping out of his shuttlecraft he approaches the unidentified aliens and stops short just before them.</p><p>On the ride to this location, Remus had thought of what he would say at this precise moment in time, he thought of many awesome things to say, and many things he would love to say, but at this moment in time he comes up blank. Not knowing what else to say, he decides to go for the classic, so clearing his throat he then slams a hand to his heart and says, "Captain Remus, Turian Navy."</p><p>The new pink and brown aliens look to an Asari who says something to them in an odd language before a man in a dark navy blue uniform brings his right hand up to his right eye, palm facing downwards, a classic Russian salute. The alien then says something back, and Remus looks to the Asari for an explanation.</p><p>The Asari takes the hint, "Captain Remus, this is General Anatoly, of the United Nations Space Command. He welcomes you to Sol, their solar system."</p><p>Remus quickly realises that all conversation is going to have to flow through the Asari, "Please tell the General, the Turian Navy thanks his species for welcoming us to Sol, and for inviting myself to their station." As the Asari speaks to the Human Remus looks to Corvinus, and asks, "Everything in order?"</p><p>Corvinus gives the Turian equivalent of a nod as he says, "We are being treated with great respect and care. If anything, my time onboard this station has been pleasurable. Please relay back to your fleet, that any communications with these people will need to be done in Prothean."</p><p>Remus taps the camera on his armour, just as the Asari begins to say, "The General says it is Humanities pleasure to invite you here, however, he asks that before we go any further if you could request the fleet that remained behind at the relay to stop interfering with their satellite."</p><p>"I will relay the request on." Remus waits for the Asari to translate this to the General before bringing his omni-tool out and pressing a few buttons. With a connection established he says, "Fleet Commander Quirinus, the aliens have requested for you stop C Formation from investigating their satellite." Unbeknownst to the Turians, they are currently playing around with a satellite that has a very dangerous anti-matter core at its heart.</p><p>It takes a second for the great Fleet Commander to respond, "Captain Remus, I have relayed the order on out of good faith."</p><p>Looking to the Asari Remus then says, "I have relayed the request on and the Fleet Commander is obeying." The Turian then looks to the General, "I am sorry, but I did not get your species name."</p><p>After hearing the Asari's tranlsation the man says a long string of words before holding a hand out, prompting Remus to look to the Asari, "The General says his species is known as Human. He thanks you for accepting his request, and offers his hand. He says a..." The Asari frowns a little as she tries to think how best to describe what she just heard in Prothean, bearing in mind she is not the most proficient Prothean speaker, "...joint hand wave is common among his people to show trust, respect, balance, and equilibrium." This is what the Asari thinks he was trying to say.</p><p>"Am I to grab his hand?" Remus asks the Asari.</p><p>Again there is some collab between the Asari and the General before the Asari tells Remus, "Yes," With a quick blink of her eyes, the Asari equivalent of a human nod.</p><p>Remus slowly reaches out for the Generals hand and the two share an uneasy handshake, but the act seemed to do something as the General was giving what the Asari would call a smile. The General then says something, which the Asari once more translates, "The General says we should move this conversation to somewhere more comfortable."</p><p>"We are his guests, and it would be rude to say no," Remus says with his own Turian smile.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Cheers for reading!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Attempting talks</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The Fleet Commander begins to think about the situation he finds himself in, and simple talks begin on the UNSC starbase.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thanks for review Jeffhurtson. </p><p>All, thanks for reading.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Fleet Commander Quirinus looks over an image as an Officer speaks to him, "From our brief analysis we have noted 5 things."</p><p>"Yes, do go on."</p><p>The Turian Officer reaches over and zooms into a part of the craft, "They achieve stealth by being able to turn on what we suspect is a nano-coat paint, capable of absorbing a minimum of 99.9% of light, making it effectively undetectable in the visible spectrum. We have a few ships that have experimented with something similar in the years past."</p><p>"What happened to them?" Asks Quirinus.</p><p>"Officially," The Officer speaks, "Development of stealth vessels was banned under Citadel Law after the Asari discovered a similar Salarain vessel in their space. After that, who knows."</p><p>"Probably developed further by high command, put up a request for information on how we can detect such vessels. For now, can we detect their Eezo core, transmissions or gravity wells?"</p><p>"Eezo we will come to in a moment, transmissions are unlikely, they were silent when circling the Goshawk, as for gravity wells, it is possible, but easily fooled. Without reflecting or emitting light for us to analyse, it will be hard for us to determine what is causing the gravity well, it could be a small asteroid that is in a shadow, thus a lack of light to reflect, or one of their stealth ships."</p><p>"I see," Quirinus says while thinking on a solution, "What else have you concluded?"</p><p>"Have a look at where the weapons are placed, what do you notice?"</p><p>"They face rearwards, towards the engines," Quirinus says, "Now why would they do that? Unless... Do they lack eezo engines?"</p><p>"Most certainly, we could detect none of the element on the stealth vessel, further, we can't even detect a slither of the element in this space. Their engines we believe are neutron engines."</p><p>Quirinus thinks hard for a moment, neutron engines have the advantage of being almost undetectable, but they are slow and incapable of FTL, meaning these stealth vessels are not meant to leave this system. Who uses stealth as a primary form of defence, wonders Quirinus, who is a firm believer of visible deterrents like dreadnoughts. "So, they can't use Eezo to rapidly slow down and will come at us engines facing forward to slow, which is why the guns face to the back of the vessel and not the front. What can you deduce about their weaponry?"</p><p>"That," The officer says with a scratch of his neck, "Is where we begin to guess more than evaluate. This is what we suspect the weapon to be," The Turian taps to a large metal rod that is slightly glowing orange, the rod is facing backwards, towards the engines. "We suspect this is what they use to shoot the plasma we came across earlier."</p><p>"No Mass Accelerator Cannons?"</p><p>"Hard to tell but I doubt it. These holes in the ship here and here are potentials but with no element zero, I struggle to see how they would accelerate a heavy projectile to required velocities. It is more likely due to the number of these holes that they are for missiles."</p><p>"I see," Quirinus says before looking to another officer in the room, "Aurelia, how effective will our barriers be to plasma?" Quirinus is not overly concerned about the missiles, his fleet has more than ample missle defence platforms, and they are a known, he has come across more than a hundred different types of missiles in his life. What he does not know about is the plasma weaponry, and this is what he is most concerned about.</p><p>The Turian whose name was called looks up from a work station, "I've been working on this Fleet Commander. The best I can say at the moment is that without our deflector operating, we are defenceless. If we find a way to power our deflector when stationary or not in FTL, it should be adequate to protect from head-on shots."</p><p>"Will this be hard to implement?"</p><p>The Turian looks uncertain, "The deflector requires immense levels of energy to operate, and I suspect we will have to sacrifice certain functions for it."</p><p>"Such as?"</p><p>"As crazy as this sounds, shields, Fleet Commander. Our shields will not actually stop a plasma shot. The velocity of the warning shot was 97.76% the speed of light, our shields would fail to activate in time." Shields are not permanently active because of the vast amounts of energy that would draw, they power up when they detect a shot is going to hit, further shields generate vasts amount of heat which would need dissipating at regular intervals.</p><p>Quirinus thinks hard, to sacrifice shields for the deflector is a bold strategy, unheard of even. "Are you certain this will work? Could we not permanently power the shields?"</p><p>"The shields are not rated for that type of use, they would fail after a few hours of being permanently on, so the deflector is the best answer I have at this moment."</p><p>Quirinus taps his chair arm for a few moments before flaring his mandible downwards slightly, "I trust your decision Aurelia. Fleet Orchestrator, when Aurelia is ready with a plan of action, have it passed onto the fleet."</p><p>"As you command," The Fleet Orchestrator says as the Fleet Commander goes back to watching the conversation on the alien space station.</p><p>/.../</p><p>The General leads the Turian Captain and his small entourage to a nearby room which has been pre-prepared in anticipation of this conversation. The room itself is vastly different from what most would suspect the first contact with a new species would take place in, instead of a small formal room with a desk surrounded by chairs being the main feature, the room the general has led them to is a larger open room with some comfortable chairs laid out at multiple locations. Inside the room, a few paintings decorate the walls that show various phases in Humanities technological and military advances. The oldest photo is an ancient sea battle between two sail ships donning gun powder cannons, and the most recent photo is an image of Orbital Drop Shock Troopers inserting into a combat zone. The pictures were carefully chosen to show the Turians that Humanity is experienced in the art of war, without the General actually having to say anything. The pictures could also be viewed as a non-verbal warning, something that says, we know how to throw a punch if push comes to shove. Despite the underlying message of the paintings, they do not dominate the room, instead, it is the comfortable nature of the room that pulls one's attention.</p><p>The laid back feeling of the room was also done on purpose, it is hoped that the rooms setting may help defuse any possible frictions between Humanity and the new aliens, by keeping people feeling more relaxed. No one within the UNSC could really say what the aliens would find relaxing, so they just went with what a human would find relaxing, and hoped the feeling would be mutual with the aliens.</p><p>Finding his way to a set of highback armchairs the General gestures for his guests to sit down first, and then when everyone is seated he is the last to sit. There is a small coffee table between the General and Captain Remus, and sitting on top of the table there is a few empty glasses and a large jug of cold water with condensation dripping down its outside. Taking a glass and jug of water in his hands he asks those he brought to the room, "Water?"</p><p>A few around the table accept the offer of water, so the General makes sure he serves each and everyone a glass. With everyone now settled in the General looks to the Asari who has been translating for him, "Could you please Tell Captain Remus that should you wish, you and your fellow comrades from the Avian are free to travel back with himself."</p><p>The Asari takes a second to understand the Generals Prothean before relaying the message on, it takes her a little longer than usual as she is desperate not to miscommunicate anything the General may be saying. "But if they want," The General then speaks when the Asari finishes interpreting, "We can accommodate them for a while so we may learn from one another."</p><p>Captain Remus considers this for a second before thanking the General for the offer and for saving the Avian's crew. Captian Remus also tells the General that Humanities actions in saving the Avian will not be overlooked by the Citadel Council, who will be sure to send representatives to establish proper communications.</p><p>"I am glad to hear it," The General replies to this with a small genuine smile after deciphering Benezzia's rough translation, he feared that this conversation would be much harder than it is currently being, "Do we have an estimated time period for the arrival of this diplomatic party?"</p><p>The Asari once again passes this message on and Remus can only try to make an educated guess as to how long it would take to mobilise the Citadel Councils first contact parties, "A few days, minimum," He tells Benezzia. In truth, history shows the Council will go above and beyond extreme measures in order to send a fleet within a day, which unusually is less time than expected for the council to send a rapid response fleet to war.</p><p>"Does this Citadel Council speak for your own species?" Asks the General, hoping to gain a clearer understanding of how the power is allocated within this council.</p><p>The answer to this question is not a straight forward yes or no, the Turian Hierarchy can operate without the Citadel Council, and can represent itself, however, in affairs such as First Contact, the Citadel Council is their representative. This is for two reasons, the first is because a collective of species all acting as one creates the image of a far more powerful organisation, it helps prevent any kind of hostilities. The second reason is because of the risk to reward ratio, the Citadel Council could impose all sorts of paralysing sanctions on a species government for not involving themselves on a first contact that has gone wrong, and first contacts as proven by the history books more often than not go wrong at some stage, usually due to a misunderstanding. The last contact to go wrong was with the Yahg where the species slaughtered the entire first contact party due to a fundamental failing on the Citadels behalf of understanding the Yahg Society. Whereas the Citadel should have sent warriors and soldiers to show their strength, in order to gain respect from the Yahg, the Citadel sent ambassadors with flowery words, which in Yahg society is an insult.</p><p>"For First Contact, they do." Remus tells the General, "But they do not command our fleets. General, may I inquire, how long has your civilisation been space capable?"</p><p>The general partially counts on his fingers before saying, "From the launch of Sputnik, 1,560 human years, or 1,836 Prothean years. Yourself?" The General uses a Prothean measure of time so that the Asari and Turian understand a 'year'. A Sol year, after all, could be any measure of time.</p><p>Hearing the numbers Remus looks to Benezzia, "How long is a Prothean year?"</p><p>It is Benezzia's turn to do the maths, "Approximately 0.8 to 1.1 Council years, we think."</p><p>The Turian taps a few of his clawed fingers on the armrest of his chair before replying to the General, "Turians have been spaceworthy almost 1,110 Prothean years. I am most curious, why have we never encountered your species before if you have been space capable for as long as claimed?" Benezzia once more translates this, but she knows with so much technical talk she is exploiting her Prothean beyond her capabilities, something she informs both Remus and the General. It is something that both already understood, however, Benezzia's translations were quite broken.</p><p>The General considers Benezzia's confession, and he knows that without a means to speak properly to the Aliens then no deals can truely be struck, the wording needs to be thoroughly understood on both sides. With this in mind, he says, "That is an excellent question Captain, a question with many long answers I suspect. A short answer, if there is such a thing, I suppose, is that we have for the longest time been content with what we already have. Now, getting down to business, we need to find a way to talk and understand one another's language. I propose we work together to create something to translate for us."</p><p>Remus flares his mandibles a little while taking off a bracelet from his arm, "Yes," He tells Benezzia, "This omni-tool contains the entire Turian and Citadel languages, with Prothean translations."</p><p>The General gratefully accepts the Turians omni-tool before nodding to someone out of the Turians line of sight, and soon a man approaches with five thick books. "5 identical books," He tells the Turian, "Each contains a human language with Prothean translations." Books are used because the Turians do not need to know how Human coding works in order to interface with a device. "Do you have books?"</p><p>Remus flares his mandibles in a way the General has quickly deduced means 'No.' "None that I am aware of, however, I will have some brought over if we find some."</p><p>"Excellent, then another parting gift," The General once again signals to someone out of sight, who then drags in a black box around the size of an old desktop printer. "A QEC comms portal. This will allow us to maintain contact. Simply press the large red button to contact us." Giving away a comms device is a dangerous risky move, if the aliens start to play with it then they could theoretically work out how human comms work, but the device is well over two hundred years old, and the most secure comms use vastly different protocols.</p><p>Captain Remus looks to one of his men, telling him that it is now his responsibility. "We thank you for your gift."</p><p>/.../</p><p>As the General speaks with the alien a few other generals and admirals have gathered in a dark room, "...50,000 men on a good day, we are arming 10,000 reserves and we have 300 mechanised armoured fighting vechs" One of the Generals says, "After a week, we could have generated a militia of 75,000 to bolster the regulars."</p><p>"Christ." An Admiral says, "We have 4,973 Marines, 15 Stealth vessels and Ultron. The auxiliary fleet is 14 cruise ships, 1 transporter and 1 colony ship."</p><p>"How much faith do you put in Ultron?" Asks another General.</p><p>"Ultron has killed 6 enemy vessels so far. How many have your men killed?"</p><p>After the quick return, there is a tense silence till the General says, "We have 15,000 ODST's, and we are mobilising 5,000 reserves as we speak."</p><p>There is another deep breath released before another General speaks, "We have 400 stealth fighters just sitting on runways awaiting our word, and 300 attack helos. It would take us months to bolster those numbers. Recent budget cuts have been harsh."</p><p>The lead General in the room looks over a map of Earth before breathing out heavily, "So, with 70,000 men we need to figure out how to defend Earth if things go down. Any idea's?" The defence of Earth has been war gamed many times before, and most in the room already know the likely answer.</p><p>An Admiral speaks, "The Fleet will draw them into Ultron, that should cut down some of their numbers if it doesn't outright destroy them."</p><p>"I have a lot of faith in Ultron," The lead man says, "But these are new threats, we must assume the worst and believe they will get past it and our planetary shielding."</p><p>"I do not believe they will come ground side," An Admiral says, "The war of Sol told us taking a planet is costly. It is my firm belief that if they get past Ultron and take out our planetary shielding, they will just bombard from orbit and request surrender."</p><p>"In such a case, we would need to dissipate all assets, make it hard to locate them. Fight a guerilla war."</p><p>The lead General nods, "Then let us war game it."</p><p>/.../</p><p>"Fleet Commander," The Intelligence officer speaks, breaking the silence on the bridge as the Fleet Commander watched in on the first contact through a camera on Captain Remus's armour. "Those that were stagging on the gas giants have forwarded a set of images you should see from their journey to rendezvous with the fleet."</p><p>"Yes." The Fleet Commander says, obviously distracted by the ongoing conversation a few hundred thousand km away from his current location. "Show me."</p><p>The Intelligence officer hands the Turian Fleet commander a data pad, containing an interesting image, "That is this solar system's star." The Intelligence officer adds, just in case the Fleet Commander does not know what a star looks like - and yes, the Intelligence Officer immediately regrets adding that comment.</p><p>The Fleet Commander looks away from the screen, showing the conversation on the alien station, and looks down to the datapad, but he keeps one ear open and listening in on the conversation. Looking at the image on the data pad the Turian brings a hand to the bottom of his jaw, "Fascinating," He says after a moment, "If this is what I believe it is, then they are mining the Star. We tried a hundred years back and failed, found gathering resources elsewhere much easier."</p><p>"The vessel also provided energy readings, should be on the next sceen."</p><p>The Fleet Commander flicks to the next screen, and after reading it his hand begins to rub his jaw some more, "Is this accurate?"</p><p>The Intelligence officer nods, "Two ships on return from the 5th planet have confirmed it. Whatever this construct is, it is generating some serious power. Even more curious is the fact we discovered 5 of them, two of which are in close proximity of the Ringworld, and one is in orbit of the planet."</p><p>"If this energy density reading is correct," The Fleet Commander begins, "One of those things alone could probably power an entire planet. Have them marked as HVT's."</p><p>"As you command. We also have images from the first and second planet in this solar system. On the next image."</p><p>Quirinus flicks to the next image and the picture takes his breath away for a moment, "This can not be real." He states.</p><p>"It is."</p><p>The Fleet Commander shakes his head a little to see if his vision is failing him, but it is not. "This entire planet has been turned into a mega city?" The Turian is currently looking at the second planet in the solar system that is now covered in gigantic cloud cities. It is something that reminds the Turian of Illium, just much larger. "By the spirits."</p><p>"These worlds are also using something similar to this planet, hiding them, the ships that scouted them out reported that from a distance, the worlds just looked like uninteresting rocks to sensors."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Tevos looks up the moment she hears a knock on her door, "Come in," She says. Soon Benezzia allows herself into the room, and the Asari councillor immediately asks, "How are the negotiations?"</p><p>"We are being taken back to the Turian fleet." Benezzia tells Tevos with some relief, "But so far all is well considering my poor Prothean. At the moment, we have agreed to pause talks till we have a more thorough understanding of one another's language."</p><p>Tevos allows a sigh of relief to escape her lips, "Thank the Goddess. Do these humans seem reasonable?"</p><p>Benezzia blinks, "So far. I don't believe we will have another Yahg situation to contend with." After taking a small pause Benezzia then adds, "Come, we must go, the Turians are waiting to take us back."</p><p>/.../</p><p>"I've been thinking," The Fleet Commander says after some time, "A lot of things this species has done just seems like hard work. Planet cities, Ring Worlds, Star Mining." The Turian pauses for a second before going on, "It makes me think, why? Why go to so much trouble unless... unless they have not got an easier solution."</p><p>"Fleet Commander?" The Fleet Orchestrator asks, hoping for the most powerful man in the fleet to clarify his thoughts.</p><p>"What if, for whatever reason, these people have not left this solar system? It would explain why they are doing things the hard way. It would also explain why they have gone to so much effort to develop stealth technologies." The man thinks some more for a second before adding, "They are using stealth maybe because they do not want to be found. If we did not go looking for the Avian we would never have found this world and its people. Their stealth was their best defence, till we found them."</p><p>"Fleet Commander, we have received the Avians crew from the Goshawk."</p><p>The Fleet Commander immediately stands, "Excellent. Have everyone briefed immediately after I greet them, I want to know if they know or witnessed anything that can give us a tactical and strategic edge. I will meet them in the 3rd cafeteria."</p><p>Soon, the Fleet Commander is looking at a bunch of weary eyes, "Your Excellency," He initially says, greeting Tevos, before moving on, "Troops, welcome to the HWV Accipitridae. We are organising accommodation for yourselves as we speak. In the meantime, we are going to be asking each and every one of you a set of questions about your time in the alien space station. Please answer to the best of your capabilities, even if you think the detail is small and unimportant. Enjoy your stay on my warship, and congratulations on making first contact."</p><p>After making his speech the Fleet Commander moves to the black box and five books gifted to Captain Remus. As he approaches them he hears someone say, "But why books."</p><p>"Books because we don't need to know how to use the technology to access what it contains," He tells them, "Quite smart in a way. Run them up to intelligence, have the books digitized and analysed."</p><p>Just as the Fleet Commander is about to lean down to inspect the black box he hears his title called, "Fleet Commander,"</p><p>The Turian stands and turns to face Tevos, "Your Excellency?"</p><p>"Thank you for coming for us," Tevos tells him, "And not starting a war in the process, but I must ask, have you secured the artefact from the Avian."</p><p>"The artefact is safe, and the men who saw it sworn to secrecy." The Fleet commander tells her, "And please, my men are just doing their job."</p><p>"Well, please tell them thank you on my behalf."</p><p>"As you command," The Fleet Commander says, "You will also be glad to hear I have sent a message to the Citadel regarding our situation."</p><p>"Then they will be here with a defence fleet within 72 hours." Tevos guesses, "And I do not wish to have so many war vessels in this species space while we try to negotiate peace and maybe more. May I request you prepare to hand over reigns to the Citadel fleet when they arrive and prepare to leave at the earliest possible moment."</p><p>"I did consider this," Quirinus tells her, "And I agree with your reasoning. I will make sure we are not in this part of space for any longer than necessary."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Earth</p><p>A short thin man looks bamboozled as he looks at the alien device which purportedly contains the ET's language. "Only means of interfacing with this thing is via networking or its inbuit interface, and I have no idea how you do either to access this alien dictionary. I mean I can do this," The man presses a button on the device and a holographic interface appears, "But what does all this gibberish mean? That set of symbols there could be settings or pressing it could be some remote to flush the loo."</p><p>"This is why we give them books," Someone says, "Guess we just have to press everything till we come across some sort of list."</p><p>After a few hours, another says, "This is bloody useless."</p><p>Another man in the room rubs his jaw, "Maybe they have done this on purpose. We give them books as an easy way to decipher our language, and they give us this. If they crack it, they can understand everything we say, while we are still sat scratching our heads. We need to fire up that QEC device and have someone ask how to use it. Dam the General for not asking when he received it."</p><p>"To be fair to the General, he was probably thinking 'don't probe my anus' for the majority of that conversation. I know I would have bottled it."</p><p>"Well, good job you weren't that General."</p><p>/.../</p><p>6 hours later</p><p>Quirinus sits up on his bed the moment a red light begins to flash. Since he slept in his armour, he leaps out of bed and immediately goes to the bridge, "Sitrep." He demands.</p><p>"Since we regrouped to advance on the new alien world, we did not have our rear guard protecting the relay. 5 Hanar whirlpools and one Vortex have entered the theatre."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Calamari</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>As new arrivals enter Sol, threatening the fragile peace established, the Citadel Council receive their first reports concerning the first contact situation. Meanwhile on Earth, it comes apparent that certain aspects of defence have been dangerously diminished due to budget cuts.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Calamari." A drenched scientist says as he looks at a dead alien that is in the process of being stretchered away. "They smell like damn Calamari."</p><p>To the Scientist's horror, when they cracked open a disfigured alien ship they have collected from the original 6 shooting at the Avian, they were met by a wall of steam and scorching hot water, which in turn half flooded the hanger bay. No one had suspected that these aliens would live in an aqua environment, and so no precautions had been made when the door was cracked open - it was a severe oversight. Yes, some hot air had been expected to escape under pressure, since after all the ship had been hit by one of Ultron's defensive platforms, but not the wall of water. The worst part of the entire situation is that the alien crew, now thoroughly cooked in the scorching steam and water, were dragged out the ship with the escaping water and are now scattered across the hanger bay - the heat making their flesh weak has also allowed for limbs to be torn off with chunks of flesh. To any alien of this species, the sight of the hanger bay must be that from a horror movie.</p><p>"And right now you almost smell of Pork," A medic says as he approaches the Scientist who is sat on a crate, looking at the dead alien bodies with some horror, getting in front of the Scientist's vision the medic goes on to say, "I can see where your clean suit has melted from here."</p><p>The Scientist looks down to his hands, and sure enough, his plastic gloves and wellies have melted from where he got caught by the escaping water. "But large squid." He says. "Dam large smelly squid."</p><p>"Does it really surprise you?" The Medic asks as he sits down next to the burned man and begins to carefully look at the melted gloves to see if he can peel them off or if they need surgically removed. To fill in the silence, the Medic says, "They reckon up to 80% of life on Earth exists in the ocean. Probably going to be the same elsewhere. Besides, I think they look more like big stupid jellyfish."</p><p>"I would not say they are stupid," The Scientist replies, "They have FTL, we do not."</p><p>"Hmm," The Medic humms before turning to look at the ship, "They tried to toss a lump of iron at us, so we did that to them. I think they were punching above their weight class, and that makes them stupid to me."</p><p>The Scientist also turns to look at the ship; its hull is a shadow of what it once was, Ultron's plasma weaponry having done a real number to it by melting its many features. "And how much tech do you think has survived this 'pan boil'? The bloody bone heads have probably melted everything of importance with their damn weapons."</p><p>"Our primary concern should always be protecting our people, and their technology a secondary concern." The Medic tells him, "And your lucky, it looks like your burns are nothing to be worried about, an application of omni-gel, and you will be on your way in no time."</p><p>After ten minutes for the Medic to apply the required lotions, the Scientist stands, "Well, I guess I should be getting to work. This FTL core won't study itself. Thanks, doc."</p><p>/.../</p><p>The President looks to his military advisors, "Give it to me straight," He eventually says after a prolonged silence, knowing from their face that the men are not going to give him information that he will like.</p><p>There is a small pause as all three advisors give a brief glance to one another, and eventually, the lead man and highest ranking advisor says, "If the Turians defeat Ultron and manage to land, we don't have enough men to defend the planet."</p><p>"How many do we have?"</p><p>"Local to Earth we have 70,000 augments." The lead man replies, "Mars has an estimated 900,000 men on call bolstered by 5,000 augments, Venus 1.1 Mil regular and 0.4 mil reserves, aided by 5,000 augments, Mercury has on last report 120,000 men, Titan has 700,000 regular and 1,500 augments, our ringworld has 15,000 augments and a further 20,000 regular. Europa and Io combined have a further 10,000 augments between them. At this very moment, we are mobilising all reserves, and creating militias, the same can be said for each of our colonies."</p><p>The President knew that Earths armed forces had taken serious and drastic cuts in order to fund other defences, but he never imagined the numbers to be so low when compared to the other colonies. "How many do we need?"</p><p>"To defend Earth from attack by unknown numbers? 1.5 million men minimum, with augments, we can reduce that to 750,000." Augments, such as those found in the Marines, are enhanced with extreme genetic upgrades and technology, they are capable of far more than a standard human. Their Achilles heel, so to speak, is their lack of numbers, one augment is equal to three or more humans in combat, but like a standard human, they can't defend two or more places at once. In addition to having a severe lack of augments, training them takes time too, a child is selected at a young age and is conditioned over their entire lives to serve, and most who are chosen do not survive the brutal training regime. To be selected, a child must have certain genetic and mental traits that allow them to accept the extensive genetic modification and training required to be called an augment.</p><p>"But, with what we have, and without mobilising reserves or militia, we can defend several major cities and some infrastructure."</p><p>The President nods in reluctance, "Then please tell me our investment into Ultron and our planetary shield has been worth it." In order to fund Ultron and the planetary shield, most of the budget came from the four branches of Earth's military, thus their recent drastic budget cuts. Because the other planets and governments in Sol have not invested in a similar system as Ultron, or as heavily into Augments, their militaries are far larger.</p><p>A second advisor speaks, "In all our war games, the combined forces of this entire solar system fails to reach Earth, Ultron kept them back every single time. In a purely human war, Ultron was more than worth it. As for the planetary shield, it can hold human assets back for a considerable time - up to four weeks, which is long enough for us to muster additional men." Despite the war games pitting Sol against Earth, Humanity is fiercely defensive of their homeworld after the War of Sol almost ruined her.</p><p>The President takes small refuge in this comment, but then he must think of those not on Earth. "What if they invade Mars? Io? Or any other planet in our solar system?"</p><p>"The other planets do not have Ultron, and we lack the vessels to mount a protracted naval battle, so, it will be a ground defensive. In this situation, we will use our stealth vessels to pester supply lines and ensure the war ground side is too expensive to win. We are still waiting for military assessments from the respective planets as to how those ground defensives will work." Using the stealth vessels to pester supply lines worked incredibly well in the War of Sol, resulting in numerous forces having to retreat from certain theatres.</p><p>The President drags a heavy hand down his face as he wonders how a military-heavy 29th-century humanity would have coped. Back then, before the War of Sol, every planet and colony had hundreds of thousands of men on call, every world had a navy and a defence network. Truthfully, it still amazes the President that any world survived the war of the 29th Century.</p><p>Hearing a man rush into the room, the President turns away from his advisors and looks to yet another General. "Mr President," The man salutes before carrying on, "We have detected a further six contacts entering our system from the object orbiting Pluto. Hull design paints them with the hostile aliens."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Quirinus turns and stands from his chair as both Benezzia and Councillor Tevos arrives on his bridge at the same moment, the duo having walked together from their accommodation. "Councillor, Matriarch," He greets with a Turian salute, showing the Councillor the respect that is required.</p><p>"Fleet Commander," Tevos returns, acknowledging his position before adding, "Your men have been most sparse with information as to why we have entered red alert, and if I am not mistaken, red alert on a Higherarchy vessel means a battle is imminent and ensured." Tevos has deep fears that something has happened between the new aliens and these Turians.</p><p>"You would be correct." The Fleet Commander says as he takes a few steps towards the only two Asari on his bridge. "We have identified 6 Hanar vessels entering this system, with what I must presume is hostile intent. My Fleet is preparing for battle as we speak."</p><p>"Fleet Commander," Tevos says with some verbal emphasis on his rank to show she respects it, which she does, getting to the rank of Fleet Commander in the Turian navy is no easy feat. "We are in the middle of a First Contact with an agreeable species; now I appreciate you must protect your vessels, as I would expect any good Turian Fleet Commander would, however, I can not let you go on a ruthless hunt with so little thought into the consequences."</p><p>The Turian gives his species equivalent of a nod, "Yes. I concur we can not do our typical, thus is the reason I requested yourself Matriarch Benezzia." The Fleet Commander turns to the second Asari, "Captain Corvinius and Captain Remus assured me that you have been our middle Asari in all conversations with our Humans. I was hoping you could advise them on our military actions."</p><p>"Fleet Commander, I believe you fail to understand, I can not have you initiating hostile intent. We can not let this species below see us as the aggressors."</p><p>Quirinus turns to look once more at the Asari, but before he replies he takes a deep breath in and out, "Ma'am if you had waited for my plan, you would see that I do not intend on hunting the Hanar. I plan to turn our fleets to face the threat and re-arrange our formation to better spring into action against 5 Whirlpools and 1 Vortex, should they be bold enough to attack. If these Humans have any military men down on their planet, and they see this, I can assure you that they will be questioning our actions. I need Matriarch Benezzia to explain our intent."</p><p>"While they are so far from our fleet is such action required?"</p><p>"Councillor, the last thing you want is anything to happen, now there is a universal saying in my business from ground troops to naval crew, and it is this, if you look like you are ready for a fight, then they won't want to fight. "</p><p>/.../</p><p>Citadel -</p><p>To a Salarian, there is little more relaxing than a replenishing hot mud bath; the mud provides their skin vital nutrients and minerals required to stay healthy, and the warm nature of the baths warm their blood to comfortable temperatures, something which any Salarian on the Citadel can appreciate. When the Salarians first met the Asari, it was quickly realised that the two find comfort at different temperatures, where as the Asari liked it at around 298 Kelvin, the Salarians like it much hotter at around 323 Kelvin. Finding a compromise in temperature was attempted, but as the Asari were far more numerous and possessed more facilities, in particular, the Citadel, the working temperature is that of the Asari. It is for this very reason why most Salarians can be seen to wear thick clothing, it is because to them, the Citadel and most none Salarian worlds are merely cold.</p><p>After taking a sip of a traditional Salarian herbal drink, which in reality could be described as muddy water with some plants native to Sur'Kesh ground up and added, Councillor Valern allows his body to slump further into the bath. This week has been most stressful for him, with news of the Prothean artefact, induction of a new spectre, attack on Councillor Tevos and elections back on Sur'Kesh, in which he only barely kept his job, he feels like a little r&amp;r is required.</p><p>Closing his eyes, Valern takes a few deep calming breaths, and savours the moment, his work with the Spectre is done, a Turian peacekeeping fleet is rescuing his colleague, and he no longer needs to campaign to keep his job. Next week should be easy for him, well, nothing is ever easy as a councillor but it should be easier than last week. The Councillor works himself into such bliss in his mud bath he barely hears his assistant enter the room.</p><p>/.../</p><p>"Glory, glory, what a hell of a way to serve," Sings the Turian Councillor to himself with some cheer as he attempts to make his dress uniform perfect in a mirror. Tonight is going to be a good night for the Turian Councillor, for tonight he unofficially welcomes a new Turian into the Ranks of the Spectres, something which is bound to be messy and alcohol heavy- it always is. After fastening a latch on his uniform he continues to sing in a buoyant manner, "In the line of duty with a rifle by your side."</p><p>Hearing a door open behind him Sparatus looks into the mirror to see who has entered the room. Seeing it to be one of his more trusted aides, he says, "Ah, Tatius, how do I look?" As he speaks he turns to allow the Turian a view of his dress uniform from the front - he hopes she likes what she sees.</p><p>"Impeccable," The aid replies after a second to look the councillor up and down, searching for anything out of place, "But I have come with a priority 1 message from our fleet sent to rescue the honourable Councillor Tevos."</p><p>Sparatus instantly clears the cheer from his face, a priority level 1 message is never good news, or at least in his years serving as a councillor, he has never had good news from a level 1 message. "Is she...?" It's the most logical conclusion the Councillor can make.</p><p>"Unconfirmed, your Excellency. Fleet Commander Quirinus has sent word of a First Contact. I have his initial report, Sir."</p><p>It takes Sparatus a second to compute the words before holding his hand out for the data pad with the report. Getting the report he reads aloud, "New species discovered at grid..." The Councillor can't be hassled with reading out the long string of numbers associated with the grid, "... Attempting contact, wait out."</p><p>Sparatus can feel his blood rushing to leave his outer skin, a biological response to when feeling threatened - in order to prevent severe blood loss from surface cuts when in battle. Sparatus quickly concludes that he will not be attending tonights unofficial dine in of the new Spectre. "Tatius, when did we receive this?"</p><p>Tatius checks the time before saying, "7 minutes ago."</p><p>Sparatus taps the data pad a few times with his clawed fingers before saying, "Call everyone back to the office, cancel all appointments for the next week, and arrange a call with the Primarch for as soon as possible, then a meeting with Valern and Irissa, Tevos' temporary stand-in. Have everyone who works on this information surrender their omni-tools, and sworn to secrecy till the news is offically released to the public." News of First Contact can have devastating consequences throughout the civilised galaxy, so the Turian Councillor wishes to suppress the report for as long as possible.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Cnidaria - Hanar Vortex</p><p>A Hanar Vortex is not a typical Hanar ship by any stretch of the imagination, its atmosphere is gaseous, and its ergonomics are designed for land creatures. Its crew is also far from usual, instead of a Hanar compliment, the vessel is mostly manned by Turian and Krogan Mercenaries and an outfit of Drell superiors who are loyal to the Hanar cause. The Vortex is also not a traditional warfighting vessel; instead, it could be seen as a transport ship, shuttling ground teams to where they are needed. In combat, the Vortex can take shots that would gut most other vessels, but its offensive capabilities are severely limited.</p><p>The moment they drop out of the relay the six Hanar vessels begin their scans of the system, but other than a few planets, nothing is found, no Forward fleet sent to intercept the Avian, no Turian reinforcements, no nothing. The Hanar fleet, however, knows that the Turians came through this relay, and have not left yet, so, they conclude they must return sooner or later. With this in mind, the 6 Hanar vessels begin advancing towards a Gas Giant, to hide in its thick atmosphere. No one on the Hanar vessels knows yet what they are to do when they come across the Turians, they know they will be outgunned, and more than likely outclassed by battle-hardened crews, but Hanar can be dangerously crafty when they put their minds to something.</p><p>/.../</p><p>1 Hour later - Citadel</p><p>Irissa looks around the small room where all three representatives of the Council have gathered, each already knows the reason behind the meeting, all having received the news from their assistants. "The Union is making ready a detail of surveillance ships," Valern begins, "Our third fleet has also begun the process of preparing for deployment."</p><p>Sparatus flares his mandibles downwards, "Yes. The Primarch is sending the third, tenth, fourteenth and 21st fleet under the command of Faunnus Cardeus to assist Fleet Commander Quirinus, so that's an additional 124 vessels."</p><p>"Heavy response," Valern replies almost immediately. "That would make the total Turian ship count 155, of which 6 are notable Dreadnoughts. Including the Salarian response that would be 169 ships and 7 Dreadnoughts, and if we include the Citadel emissary vessel, 170 ships, 7 Dreadnoughts. All this under the command of the Great Faunnus is a potent battle group, Irissa, what do you suspect the Republics will provide?"</p><p>Irissa takes a second before saying, "The Republics will ready vessels, but I do not believe they will send any to war prematurely. I must also voice my concern for sending such a heavy presence, the Citadel can not spare sending such a high volume of Dreadnoughts to one sector of space, and nor can we risk initiating hostilities by appearing like we are preparing for war."</p><p>Valern speaks before Sparatus can even open his mouth, "The Salarian Union prefers to end wars before they even begin. If this is a first contact, the new species is unlikely to have considerable assets, or we would have discovered them sooner. A heavy presence will deter hostilities."</p><p>The Turian councillor slips in his own thoughts immediately after Valern, "The Primarch also does not wish for a reoccurrence of the Rachni on our watch. Our fleet numbers are non-negotiable." This statement should surprise no one, whenever there is a First Contact, history shows the Turians are without exception heavy-handed in their response.</p><p>Irissa looks among the two others in the room before blinking, "Then I see I would be outvoted if it comes to it."</p><p>Sparatus flares his mandibles, showing he acknowledges her acceptance of their plans, "The Hierarchy does, however, call for involvement from all three species, we would come across as a stronger front."</p><p>Irissa taps the table before accepting defeat, "I will inform the Matriarchs of your application for a combined fleet, however, do not expect any more than the Forward Containment fleet." Sparatus does some quick thinking, the Forward Containment Fleet is a considerable fleet, commanded by an old Asari Matriarch who is experienced in the art of war, making it a fleet he would not like to face in combat, meaning it will certainly add extra umph to any task force.</p><p>"Excellent," Sparatus then says, "Then we will need to address the fact that sending such a fleet will raise questions. People will think we are going to war, the Terminus systems especially. Stock markets will likely plummet..."</p><p>Valern does not let the Turian finish, "We inform when we know..." Seeing an assistant walk into the room Valern pauses for a second before finishing, "...If we are at war. For the stock markets, we can employ a certain Volus organisation to manage damages, however, before we discuss any more on such issues, it appears as if we also have an update."</p><p>This is the assistant's queue to hand the three in the room a data pad each, the tablets contain images sent from Quirinus's fleet. It does not take long for the three to unlock the devices and flick through the images, but one particular image has Sparatus captured, "Circumference 5,000km," He says with some uncertainty after seeing a picture of the Ring World above the alien planet, "Spectrology seems to suggest the ringworld is made from the same materials the Citadel is made from. Spirits."</p><p>The three look up from their data pads and to one another, allowing Irissa to say, "Could it be...?"</p><p>"Prothean?" Valern answers, "Strong possibility, no other species has managed to recreate the metal in vast quantities." It is a common misconception that the Citadel species do not know how to make the fabled Prothean metal, in truth, they do know how to make it, just the cost of doing so is eye-watering high - making it unfeasible to have any large constructs such as ships made from the metal.</p><p>Sparatus takes a deep breath before saying, "What concerns me more is that no one in the Turian fleet will understand these spectrology readings." A rapid response fleet such as that commanded by Quirinus has little need for a spectrology expert - they are not expected to mine or do any work which requires such an expert - instead, they are expected to scrap it out. "They will not know that this station is likely to be Prothean, so will likely underestimate its defences. In any case, this must change our response. If this world is Prothean, then we must find a way to involve this species, if it is not Prothean, but their own construct, then they are far more dangerous, they could have warships made from it."</p><p>"A horrifying thought."</p><p>/.../</p><p>"Fleet commander," A voice calls and Quirinus looks up from his console, "We have detected another 4 stealth ships."</p><p>Every now and then, at irregular intervals, his vessels would detect a small formation of stealth ships uncloaking for a split second, they would be far enough away not to cause concern, but close enough to continually remind the Turian they are out there. They would also appear at random locations as if they have arrived at this planet from elsewhere. If he added up all the stealth vessel appearances, he would guess that this species has at least 50 of them, if not more.</p><p>Of course, he has also considered that the aliens may have far less, they could have as few as six and are using the same six to make it appear as if they have far more by having them 'arrive' at different locations. In a way, it could be deception; these people could be deceiving him into thinking they have way more than they have, and unless they all uncloak at the same time, he would never know otherwise.</p><p>The Fleet Commander can't help but appreciate the potential tactic to deceive him, and the whole idea thrills him, this situation, as deadly as it could be, is exciting and refreshing - This is why he will not take up a job in HQ, advising the politicians, he would miss days like these.</p><p>Quirinus current work, however, is not concerning the stealth vessels; instead, it is focusing on the known red forces, the Hanar - but he has not forgotten the stealth vessels entirely - he has others with scientific and engineering minds attempting to figure out how to detect them. His own work has been reading up on reports relating to how the Hanar use Vortex's, and so far he has read nothing outside of the ship being used to launch ground troops, or boarding parties. Usually, the Turian would not be worried about this ship, it is mostly harmless in space, but considering his cargo, he firmly believes the Hanar will go out their way to get men onto his ship. It is for this reason he had the Prothean artefact transferred to a destroyer not ten minutes ago. He knows, however, the Hanar if they are watching will have likely sussed this ruse out, so he sent the shuttlecraft carrying the Prothean artefact to every Turian vessel to dock for ten minutes - because he too can use deception. He also believes if the Hanar are not certain where the item is, then they will not launch a raiding party - never mind raiding the wrong ship.</p><p>The Fleet Commander has also been wondering how the Hanar would get men aboard his vessel, and so far, he believes they will go for a mix of mines around the relay to confuse and a lightning attack to dazzle, allowing the Vortex to slip in. He knows that once the Vortex is docked, it is latched on and he will have no option but to fight them off on his own vessel - and considering Vortex's are known to carry Krogan, this is not something he looks forward to.</p><p>The Humans had taken to the news of the Hanar quite well thankfully, however, he suspects from their lack of surprise they already knew about them. Their main concern was that whatever quarrel his own people and the Hanar have, that it doesn't come to their worlds again, and they will provide no assistance to either fleet unless one proves to be a threat to them. Quirinus did raise the possibility of working together to make sure nothing came to their world, but the aliens refused, not that Quirinus truly expected any other answer. Yes, his own people and the aliens have talked a little, in a language his people barely understand, but the aliens still on the grand scale of things, know nothing about his own people or these Hanar pirates, to the aliens, his own people could just as likely be the pirates and the Hanar could also be the peacekeepers.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Citadel</p><p>"Alright, let us hear it," Irissa says as Sparatus leans forward and presses play, causing an image of a Turian to appear on a holo projector.</p><p>"To whoever is watching this, this is my last log as captain of the CV Avian. My vessel has taken heavy damage from Hanar Whirlpools and needs to be evacuated. I have given the order for my crew and all! Asari workers to join our new alien friends on their stealth vessel. I made this choice freely and was not coerced into making such a choice. Like how Xiavia was forced to flee to higher ground when the oceans rose, I suppose. As far as I know, my people are to head back to their world, the third planet in this solar system, but we are yet to establish any proper means of communication. I should inform any Citadel affiliated vessel, however, that they are being watched, and are in the range of powerful weapons. We do not know the weapons nature, only their power, and they are capable of eliminating Hanar Whirlpools with a single shot.</p><p>Spirits providing, this is helpful information, and I shall see my family soon. Spirits be with you."</p><p>As soon as the recording of the Turian captain of the CV Avian stops Valern speaks, "Species willing to rescue stranded crew, initial impressions promising."</p><p>"Indeed," Sparatus muses, "However, I am concerned, we have seen their Ringworld, and now we have news they are capable of eliminating Hanar Whirlpools with a single shot and have stealth vessels. This species is war capable."</p><p>"What would it require to take down a Whirlpool with one shot?" Asks Irissa.</p><p>Valern replies, having recently read an STG report on Hanar Vortex's to calculate the probability of Councilor Tevos being rescued, "One shot? Any standard Turian Dreadnought from the last 50 years."</p><p>"So, we can conclude they at least have dreadnoughts," Sparatus says. "Maybe 7 of our Dreadnoughts is a little low."</p><p>"No." Irissa shoots the Turian down, "We know they have ships with Dreadnought levels of power, and we know they have stealth ships, that is all - however, I agree that the threat is larger than we initially anticipated, and I will inform the Matriarchs."</p><p>"The Union will increase the number of surveillance ships available. We will also release data from our own work on stealth detection so your fleet has an increased chance of detecting the stealth vessels."</p><p>The Turian Councilor flares his mandibles a little, happy with the Salarian agreeing to release some information on stealth detection, "Fantastic news. Now, the report sent in with this video also tells us they have recovered the artefact."</p><p>"Glad to hear it is intact," Valern says, "But more pressing concerns to contend with at the moment. Councillor Tevos whereabouts not yet ascertained."</p><p>"I believe," Sparatus says, "That the Councillor has been taken with the rest of the Avian's crew. I say this because of how Captain Corvinus emphasised 'All! Asari workers', it makes me believe Tevos was among them."</p><p>"But not confirmed," Irissa says, "But as much as it pains me to admit it, we must focus on first contact, and not the fate of one Asari."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Uranus- Cnidaria - Hanar Vortex - 2 hours after entering the local system</p><p>Urdnot Wreav spins a knife between his fingers as he looks at a young Krogan that has barely passed his rite of passage, the young Krogan is broody, and hormonal, making him territorial and aggressive. This behaviour, however, is to be expected with any young Krogan, and Wreav knows the young Krogan will need put into his place sooner or later - Something Urdnot Wreav is more than happy to do. Hearing a door to the bridge swoosh open the battle experienced Krogan looks up and sees one of the Hanar slaves - a Drell - walk in. "Your attention." The Drell says, gaining the attention of all 37 in the room.</p><p>With all eyes on him, the Drell goes on, "We have discovered an unidentified space station in this gas giant, all attempts to hail it has failed, and there are no windows to indicate if anyone is alive on board." Damn, Wreav hates how straight back and formal this Drell is. "We are to go aboard and establish who this station belongs to. Our docks are not compatible so we will be cutting a hole in this stations hull."</p><p>"What if we discover something we ain't seen before?" Wreav asks, knowing that his is now in uncharted space.</p><p>The Drell turns to look at him before replying, "Your employers do not wish for unwanted violence, they are not violent people. You will secure the area, and one of your employee representatives will come to establish communications."</p><p>"Sure," Wreav replies with a shrug of his shoulders, not thinking to ask exactly what the Drell meant.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Trepid Explorers</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>As an unsteady peace forms, Earth's leaders invite a small number of people from the fleet above their world to Earth, and Ava discovers a new world.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>RR:</p><p>Anonleous, I wanted to focus more on first contact aspects, so nothing is going to go down... yet. Cheers for the support.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Citadel: Asari Councillor's Office</p><p>Irissa paces back and forth in front of her office's window as she studies a datapad with new information regarding the first contact currently underway. According to the datapad, the unknown aliens have fired a warning shot at the fleet, but this is not what concerns her, instead, it is what the warning shot consisted of that worries her.</p><p>"You are going to wear your carpet out," A wise sounding voice says.</p><p>Irissa sighs before stopping at her desk to half throw, half place the datapad down onto the table. With the troublesome datapad no longer in her hands, Irissa looks to another Asari who is in the room with her and asks, "What is the potential of Plasma weaponry?"</p><p>Lidanya, the Matriarch in charge of the Citadel Defence Fleet turns the datapad around and looks at the fleets recording of the Plasma Weapon, paying particular attention to the shots statistics. The Matriarch takes a moment before replying, "Plasma-based weaponry will be potent to any vessel in our fleet, and if these readings regarding the plasma shot are accurate, our shields will be rendered inert." Lidanya is the second most experienced Admiral in the whole Asari fleet, the most experienced protects the Asari crown jewel, Thessia.</p><p>Irissa breaths out a deep sigh, "What do you make of this species?" She then asks?</p><p>Lidanya has been privy to all the information Quirinus has sent, "Personally, I do not believe we have enough information to start making any judgements."</p><p>"But from what we have seen?"</p><p>"I could make many assumptions from what we have seen," Lidanya replies, "But most will be wrong; therefore it would be unwise to act on any feelings I may, or may not have about the situation."</p><p>"I suppose you are correct," Irissa says reluctantly, "But, do you think we are making the right decision to send just shy of 200 war vessels?"</p><p>"That depends on what Fannus decides to do with them," Lidanya says with a knowing tone to her voice, "If he charges in like a Krogan mid blood lust, then yes, we will see blood; however, I do not believe Faunnus Cardeus is that type of Turian. If he, which I suspect he will, quarantines the relay on our side and only sends through a small selection of vessels, then things will go smoothly."</p><p>"Then we should dictate that he..."</p><p>Lidanya begins to smile, which causes Irissa to stop speaking, and allows Lidanya to speak, "In war, too many military disasters can be traced to politicians interfering with their military commanders, and issuing them ill-considered military orders they are not qualified to give. Yes, we can ask Cardeus to try and not cause a war through mindless violence; however, we should not attempt to command his strategy." Lidanya still remembers losing too many friends due to this reason during the Krogan Rebellions.</p><p>Seeing a young Asari assistant walk in with yet another datapad Irissa holds her hand out, and soon she is saying, "It is now confirmed these aliens have stealth vessels made from the Prothea." Prothea is the fabled Prothean material that makes the citadel. "So I will bet my left hand the Turians will demand more ships for their battle group." Irissia is coming to hate these datapad updates on the situation, they are rarely delivering good news.</p><p>Lidanya stands still for a moment as she begins to think, and with some thoughts in mind she pronounces, "I must concur that this latest development is concerning, and I would advise informing the Matriarchs that preparing vessels would not be a bad idea, however, I wish to speak with Cardeus first."</p><p>/.../</p><p>The Great Faunnus Cardeus is known to all who know of him as a man of great focus, commitment, and sheer will. It is said that he once destroyed a Batarian dreadnought with nothing more than a lone frigate, and to most who know him, they would not question it. When children check under their beds for Batarian Slavers, the slavers check the darkest corners of space for the great Faunnus Cardeus. It is for this very reason why Faunnus is one of the Primarchs Chosen, a small but elite selection of Turians with an exceptional skill set, who are sent on missions that simply can not fail. They are called the Primarchs Chosen because the Primarch himself appointed them into the position and to most Turians, this title is more fabled than the elite Spectres. Yes, to be chosen by the council to serve their will also demands great respect, but to be selected by the Primarch to serve as his right hand? That to most Turians, who have an almost fanatical devotion to the Primarch, is a different story altogether. It is for this reason why Cardeus has his very own dreadnought, the HWV Cardeus, named after himself. Cardeus's dreadnought looks like any other Turian dreadnought, to prevent it being targeted in battle, but it has some subtle differences. Most notably, the HWV Cardeus lacks ground assets, which allows more space to add extra armour and higher capacity communication assets.</p><p>The great Turian can often be found in the library of the HWV Cardeus when not deployed, or in the C3, also known as the Combat Command Centre when deployed. He is very rarely found on the bridge, for that is not where he works; instead, he leaves the bridge to the Fleet Commander and ships Captain - he does not need their work to distract him from his own. In the C3 the Primarchs Chosen has a selection of handpicked crew to man the numerous stations, ranging from intelligence officers to a previously retired Fleet Commander to role play red forces.</p><p>Sitting at an unassuming desk in the corner of the C3 is the Turian himself, a hot drink in one hand and datapad in another hand, but most would not assume it. The fabled Turian is short, 5 foot 11 to be precise, 2 inches shorter than the average turian, his eyes do not glow red with the Primarchs wrath and his claws aren't any longer than a normal Turians- no, he looks just like a normal, but short, Turian. Currently, the HWV Cardeus is travelling with its escort of 31 vessels to the Citadel to rendezvous with the rest of the force mustered by the Citadel Species, giving the Primarchs Chosen time to think. He has received the initial reports from Fleet Commander Quirinus, but without really knowing the Turian Fleet Commander Cardeus cannot trust his beliefs of the aliens capabilities, so it is for this reason he has been studying Quirinus's record, and so far the Primarchs Chosen is mildly impressed, allowing him some faith of Quirinus assessment of the situation.</p><p>"Faunnus," An intelligence officer speaks, calling to the Primarch's Chosen by his first name, something the Turian only allows in the C3. "We have a new report forwarded to us by the Council."</p><p>"Please," Faunnus says as he holds a hand out for the report and soon the Turian is reading over a new report. "Our fears have been confirmed, we can confirm the existence of stealth vessels made with Prothean Metal Prothea." He reads from the report to himself to help remember what the report mentions as he flicks over to a new page which has three pictures attached to it of the Stealth vessels. One of the designs is a classic design for a stealth vessel, or so Faunnus thinks, it is that of a predator, designed to destroy ships without ever revealing its location, the next is a different design, looks more blocky and he may even guess armed with heavier equipment, something designed to slog it out. The third and final stealth design, however, has him puzzled, it is 400m long and has no apparent weapons, its nature to him is uncertain, which makes the vessel all that more dangerous, because if he doesn't know how it will fight, how can he prepare to fight it? Faunnus feels a shiver run up his body, this entire situation, how tremendously exciting.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Uranus Mine Sevastapol</p><p>Cutting through the metal on the alien station had proven to take far longer than usual, meaning whatever metal this station is made from, it was tough stuff, more robust than the armour on the most modern of Turian dreadnoughts. Hearing the slab of station cut away to allow himself entry onto the station fall and slam into something solid, most likely the floor inside the space station, Wreav primes his claymore, ready to storm the station.</p><p>"Atmosphere stable," Someone calls out, "It's breathable."</p><p>Wreav suppresses a grin as he removes his helmet, he hates it when he has to wear a breather, the wretched thing restricts his sight, breathing and hearing - he often compares it to having his head in a fishbowl.</p><p>"Door opening in 5...4...3...2...1...Door opening."</p><p>As soon as the door that separates the alien station and the Hanar vortex opens 20 Krogan storm through, their barriers powered and shotguns at the ready, but no rounds are fired, much to the Krogans displeasure. Inside the room they have cut in to, they find a single alien awaiting them, it appears like a short Asari, wrong colour however and a weird snow white fur on its head, its eyes also glow a mysterious purple too. With the room secured the Krogan turn their attention to the bizarre alien, approaching it in an almost threatening way, but Wreav pulls the Krogan back and away from the Alien. "This station ain't secure yet." He complains to them, "And this thing ain't armed. We got two doors out of this room, you ten take that door, we will take the second. You, young'in, keep an eye on it."</p><p>As soon as the Krogan move to enter the rest of the station the until now silent alien shouts something, which Wreav assumes to mean 'No', but he doesn't care, he is to secure the station as per his orders. Storming through another room, the aged Krogan comes across what must be a kitchen, where there are a few childish paintings pinned to a board and some half-eaten food in five dishes. Four more aliens, Wreav assumes from the half-eaten dishes, but after a thorough search of the station which looks like it's purpose is for mining something, Wreav finds no others, prompting him to tell the Varren holders to come aboard - his nose is good, but not Varren good.</p><p>Meanwhile, Ava watches as the enormous aliens stomp around her station, she has figured they are looking for the Human crew, but they will never find them, she ensured they were hidden safely in a cargo crate before going to greet the aliens. Had she had more time, she would have cleaned all the dishes and hidden evidence there was any Human crew, but it is what it is. Feeling a hand grab her shoulder, she complies with the huge alien that drags her to the kitchen, pointing at the dishes. Ava quickly realises what the Alien wants, but she does not comply; instead, she just speaks some gibberish in the hopes they will drop it. The aliens search tirelessly for 5 hours before one of the huge aliens pushes her into a chair and a second alien species comes onboard and sits opposite her.</p><p>/.../</p><p>"Primarchs Chosen, you have a call from Matriarch Lidanya."</p><p>Faunnus eyes light up hearing this and he places his hot drink down as he turns on a monitor and accepts the call. Seeing the Asari appear on his screen, Faunnus grins, "Matriarch, it is always a pleasure."</p><p>Matriarch Lidanya allows a small smile to creep out as she says, "Primarchs Chosen, I have heard you have a new mission taking you to a small dark corner of space."</p><p>"So you know?" Faunnus allows a second for the Asari to blink her confirmation, "Suppose you would. How is your family?"</p><p>"Well thank you, Eris has recently been promoted to the executive officer of the AEV Nymphaea, a deep space exploration vessel." Lidanya allows for a second before going on, "But I call not for a friendly chat, my people are worried about how you plan to tackle the current situation. Sending just shy of 200 vessels into a new species system is not sitting well with the Matriarchs."</p><p>"Yes," Faunnus scratches his left mandible as he thinks, it is a bad habit he has never managed to see the back of, "I have considered such myself. My plan is to simply sit on our side of the relay, and only send through the citadel envoy vessel and a small security detail of seven ships. I am thoroughly going to utilise the saying, out of sight, out of mind. Will the Destiny Ascension be joining us?"</p><p>Lidanya blinks, confirming to the Turian that the ship will be his to command, "They are clearing it for departure now; however I will not be joining you, my duties are at the Citadel. But I am glad to hear we are thinking along similar ideas for the current situation."</p><p>"I imagine my plan will put the Matriarchs at rest," Faunnus says, "But it is a shame you can't join us, I quite enjoyed thrashing ideas with you last time we tangoed."</p><p>This causes Lidanya to smirk a little, before saying, "Come back in one piece, and I am sure there will be time for you to pass ideas by me on the citadel. Lidanya out."</p><p>Seeing the image cut, Faunnus leans back in his chair and allows happy memories to take over for a short time. Matriarch Lidanya is one of the only people to escape his grasp continuously in a war game, but he is more than ready to reclaim his honour by capturing her next time.</p><p>/.../</p><p>A General looks to another, "They didn't get any humans, just a Hyperdyne Systems model 341-B and scavenged some old computers. We, on the other hand, have now identified 2 new species, one currently known as 'Walking tank', and the other as 'tall frog'."</p><p>"What are we going to do about it?"</p><p>The first General breaths out before saying, "The 341-B has a QEC inbuilt and it is uploading its visual and audio feed, so we are going to let it go, see what we can learn from it." Ideally, the General would not want the aliens to get a hold of a 341-B, fearing they could reap its technology; however, the information it could provide will be invaluable.</p><p>The second General nods before asking, "What will they get from the old computers?"</p><p>The first shrugs, "Nothing interesting, just some personal logs and mining information. Pretty much unusable data."</p><p>The second seems rather pleased with this information, "Then I guess this is what we call a fair trade. So long as they don't realise that they have a 341-B, all they get is some old most likely half-broken machines, and we get some solid intel from the inside."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Uranus</p><p>"So, what now?" Asks a young blood Krogan as himself and Wreav escorts the new alien back to the Vortex, both disappointed with what they found on the alien station.</p><p>Wreav shrugs his massive shoulders before responding, "Suppose we high tail it back to friendly space."</p><p>"The jobs still out here." The young Krogan complains to the old war dog, "This changes nothing."</p><p>"If you think that you're more stupid than you look," Wreav replies, "Think about it, why don't you think we have found the Turian fleet? The answer is that they have probably run into these guys, then done themselves something stupid, meaning you can bet your small quad the Citadel is sending a containment fleet as we speak. That's hundreds of vessels, kid, a full-blown battle group with numerous dreadnoughts, and trust me, we ain't surviving that encounter."</p><p>The young blood is quiet for a bit as he mulls over the older Krogan's words till asking, "What you reckon will happen to this thing? Looks soft and squishy, not worth putting in the varren pit."</p><p>Wreav had been thinking about this very question, and he has come to his own conclusion, "It ain't no use to us, we can't understand a thing it says, so I reckon it will be sold to the Slaving Circles, that way we clean our hands of it." Wreav personally thinks they should shoot it out the airlock; however, the Hanar need to keep the pretence that this is a pirate fleet, and so they need to act more like pirates, and pirates don't just go spacing their loot.</p><p>Getting to the holding cells onboard the Vortex Wreav slams a button on the wall and a door begins to open, only for a young Asari to jump out and attempt to run, however, Wreav had anticipated the act and slams a fist into the Asari's face, resulting in a sickening crack and one unconscious Asari. Grabbing the now unconscious Asari on the floor by the leg the young Krogan drags it back into the holding cell before Wreav shoves Ava inside too.</p><p>Getting inside the holding pen Ava looks around, searching for anything of interest before turning her attention to the Asari laying on the floor, and while Ava is by no means an expert on aliens, she suspects the blue alien is young. Ava makes this judgement based on the facial features of the blue alien, if it were a human, on facial features alone, she would guess it is around 16. Kneeling down, she begins to inspect the Asari, and finds it to have a broken nose, and two deep gashes on its face from the Krogans fist. Taking her WY branded jumper off and tearing off a sleave, Ava begins to press the sleeve over the wounds in the hopes that it will help stop the blood. After some contemplation, Ava decides not to fix the nose, she does not know the alien's biology so she does not know if fixing the nose as if the Asari is a human would do more damage or not. If Ava was also privy to the information, she would realise that this Asari is wearing the uniform of a Citadel navy personnel.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Citadel: Council Observation Tower</p><p>Sparatus stands with his hands folded neatly behind his back as he looks out into space, to his right is Councillor Valern, and to his left Irissa. The three representatives all stand quietly, looking at the huge fleet massed and floating in space just outside the citadel, by now it is almost impossible to hide the fact that something big is happening, and people are asking questions. Seeing the tell tale blue flash of ships entering FTL Sparatus says, "Spirits be with them."</p><p>"And may the Goddess guide them," Irissa says, "But for now, we need to address the rumours."</p><p>"No," Valern says as he turns from viewing the fleet enter FTL, "The voices asking questions have been getting quite loud, but must insist we keep to our original plan, only inform once we know."</p><p>"Hmm, how long till the fleet gets to the location?" Irissa asks Sparatus, knowing the man is more than likely going to have the answer on the top of his head. Sparatus may not be the best with diplomacy, remembering names, faces and random political articles, but he does know his military facts.</p><p>"2 days at maximum velocity." As the number of ships jumping into FTL dwindles, Sparatus also turns around, "But for now, we need to have a plan for war, and peace."</p><p>"Yes," Valern replies, "Plan for worst, hope for best. The union is activating assets required for a protracted war. News of ships made from Prothea has disturbed many in the Union."</p><p>"Same with the Hierarchy, we are lighting the fires in old forges and powering up redundant munition factories. Our old dockyards are also undergoing inspections while mines have been given notice for sudden potential demand for raw materials." Some may argue that they are being over precautious, but no government wants to be the one to say they sat idle when a potential war was on hand.</p><p>Irissa can not say that much has happened with her own people, while democracy has its advantages, it also has its disadvantages, one such downside is having decisions made quickly - almost an impossibility with the bickering Matriarchs. "Our next actions are still being debated. Have you put any thought into what if they come with trade over war?"</p><p>"Lots. Species seems technology rich." Trust the Salarian to say this. "But waiting for analysis from Citadel Envoy to deduce what is tradeable."</p><p>"We are more concerned with borders in such an instance," Sparatus says, "Right next to the Batarians, and if it's true they have the technology to build constructs from Prothea, then pirate raids for tech are likely. We are willing to offer our services to stop such instances, in exchange for some technologies."</p><p>"What makes you think Sparatus that they will require a Turian fleet to protect themselves?"</p><p>"We are a known to this galaxy," Sparatus says, "Pirates and Batarians know we have a heavy fist, whereas they don't know how this species will react, so you can bet they will test the waters. We can be considered as a shit deflector."</p><p>Irissa blinks, "A fair conclusion. I believe the Matriarchs will want to know how to make Prothea in vast quantities at an affordable cost, and will provide a great deal to ascertain this."</p><p>"Hmm," The Salarian councillor says, interrupting Irissa and Sparatus, "We have an update."</p><p>The three peer at Valerns omni-tool, which now displays a repeating image of Turian and an unknown alien species Saluting one another, "This looks promising," Sparatus starts, "But I know a man of the military when I see one. I also see Captain Corvinus is with them, but who is the Asari? I know her by face but not name." He knows the Asari is some big hitter due to the fact he has seen her with Tevos more than a few times.</p><p>"Matriarch Benezzia," Irissa inform Sparatus, "She was on the Avian to help with the Prothean artefact. She is also a popular philosopher among my people. But seeing this makes me believe that there is a high chance Tevos is with them," Irissa concludes logically, "But then why would Benzzia be at this meeting and not Tevos."</p><p>Valern replies to Irissa, "A written report attached to the video says she is there to help translate Prothean, this species is apparently quite proficient at it."</p><p>Sparatus hums a little before saying, "It is starting to appear to me more and more like this station is Prothean with how this species is proficient in their language and making their material."</p><p>"Your jumping to conclusions." Irissa says, "We now have a means of communication, so we will know shortly. The fact they speak Prothean is also a bonus, it means we do not need to dedicate considerable resources into rapidly translating their language. Something that took us just shy of a year with the Volus if you remember correctly." The Volus were an absolute nightmare case to translate, not only did they speak in vastly different frequencies to any known species, but they also spoke in unusual sentence structures, making it even harder to understand. Today, what you hear when a volus speaks is an advanced virtual intelligence that translates as close to real time as possible. The different voices people hear when Volus speak is from where the Volus have tweaked said VI - in fact, the voice market for Volus's is a booming business, and a person with a 'respectable' voice can earn a lot of money by providing his voice to a Volus for use with their VI.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Palaven</p><p>The class leader walks back and forth at the front of the class, his hands neatly folded behind his back, in a way one would think is uncomfortable, but as the students in the class know, the class leader could remain in this stance for the entire lesson if needed, and maybe indefinitely. The teacher, as the students are very familiar with, is a strict, ex-military man who many suspects climbed quite high up the ranks, but none know for sure just how high, that is information the Turian has never let slip. One thing the students do know for certain, however, is the Turian's unquestioning loyalty to the Higherarchy, partially from his service, but also partially from his behaviour, no normal Turian has a 6 foot tall picture of the Primarch in his classroom, and no other teacher takes time out of their lesson to teach Higherarchy principles.</p><p>Coming to a stop at the centre of the room the Class Leader turns to a student and looks down with some disappointment before asking, "When you first walked into this classroom, 3 years ago, I asked you all, what is the difference between a citizen and a civilian. Most of you gave a correct answer, but none of you understood the answer. Sarraif, what is the difference?"</p><p>The student stands up from his rather simple metallic chair to reply, saying, "A citizen has earned the right to vote, a civilian has not. "</p><p>The class leader gives a sigh of disappointment before telling the student to sit back down and moving onto another student, who in turn also stands up to say, "The books tell us a Citizen accepts personal responsibility for the safety of a body politic, defending it with his life, a civilian does not."</p><p>"Excellent Cadet Desolas, " The Class Leader says with a small flare of his mandibles, "A perfect response, but, what does this mean?"</p><p>The student gives it a second before saying, "A citizen has the courage to make the safety of the Higherarchy their personal responsibility."</p><p>"Courage, they have the…" The class leader stops speaking before turning his body to fully face a different student, "Cadet Talon, what is so important on your omni-tool? " The class leader speaks with a calm demeanour but none doubt he is seething inside for the blatant disrespect.</p><p>Cadet Talon stands from his chair, "Fleet movements, Class Leader."</p><p>This perks the Class Leaders interest, his previous anger tamed, for now, but not forgotten about, "Do expand."</p><p>"The Primarch's Chosen has taken a fleet, including Asari and Salarian vessels to near the Terminus systems. Rumour is the Citadel…"</p><p>"Rumour?" Asks the Class Leader who has now approached the cadets table, "Which fleets have deployed."</p><p>"Third, Tenth, Fourteenth and Twenty First fleet. I'm not certain about the Asari or Salarian fleets, but it totals around 160 vessels "</p><p>The class leader allows his right mandible to move upwards slightly, all of that under the Great Cardeuss is a potent battle group, and maybe the largest battle group assembled in the last decade or so. "Cadet Novik, how many dreadnoughts would you expect to find in this battle group? "</p><p>A cadet stands on the opposite side of the room to say "Five, Including the Primarch's Chosen own dreadnought." Before sitting back down.</p><p>"Correct, " The class leader replies, "Cadet Hortensia, what is special about the named fleets? "</p><p>The cadet stands and takes a second before replying to the Class Leader, "All have elements that recently partook in the war games simulating a Batarian attack on a colony world." This is a common war game the Turians practice to help deter any 'Slave Runs' on Turian worlds.</p><p>The Class Leader takes a moment before turning to the Cadet, "Very true, but not what I was thinking of. Cadet Talon, what is the destination of the Fleets?"</p><p>"Sector 318-310."</p><p>The Class Leader turns on his heels to face the Cadet, "Interesting. The Batarian colony world of Ammon is in sector 311. Class, I have a new assignment for you, tomorrow I want a plan from each of you on an invasion of Ammon, presented in its whole. I will be paying particular attention to your logistics chain. Cadet Marcelleus, why may that be?" There is a silent but visual sigh from the class at receiving additional work.</p><p>As per usual, the cadet stands to reply, "Sector 311 is close to the Terminus, any conflict in this region will need a sturdy supply chain, or else attrition will be our downfall. "</p><p>"Indeed, Cadet Talon, you will also be presenting on the ramifications of a conflict with the Batarians. I am most interested in a proposed solution to the lack of Titanium they will cease to supply our fleets with. Class, you are dismissed."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Earth - Vancouver</p><p>Walking backstage from a press release the President takes off his suits jacket, removes his tie, and undoes his shirts top button to help cool down. Had the camera's been able to see under the podium, they would have seen the president's legs were quivering as he told Humanity that an alien fleet is currently orbiting Earth. Had the camera's VI's not been doing their job, they would have also seen excessive amounts of sweat running down his face, induced by both the nerves and the hot lights that illuminated him. In his speach, the President also told the people that a wartime economy was being declared, something not seen in hundreds of years, in order to best prepare for the worst possible outcome of his talks with the aliens. He told them that Humanity must prevail.</p><p>The President had not wanted to reveal the aliens quite yet, however, it had become a requirement, people had begun to ask serious questions, like why every available military asset was being activated, and why Ultron had been fired. It did not also help people with the correct type of telescope could zoom in on the Turian fleet. So, when a damage control system had been established to help control the inevitable panic and fallout, he had elected to tell the people.</p><p>With the people informed, the President now has access to additional funds, so he gives a high ranking military man a nod, and soon, Ultron Defence Platforms begin to get churned out of space docks in the hundreds, police forces gain access to military weapons, and Humanity, in general, prepares for another war.</p><p>After taking a minute to calm himself the President begins to walk with an advisor, "How are our translation team getting on?"</p><p>"Slow," The advisor responds.</p><p>"Can we get more people on it?"</p><p>The advisor shakes his head, "No, their device is slowing the entire thing down."</p><p>"Well, that is annoying. We need something to show that the Aliens are not out for us, and something soon. We need something to show the people to help calm them." The President has already released the footage of Captain Remus and one of his generals shaking hands, and Shepard passing over the atmosphere shield, but nothing more - he dared not show the exchange of salutes.</p><p>"If I may," An advisor speaks up, "What if we can show the Aliens are similar to us?"</p><p>"What are you thinking?"</p><p>The Advisor takes a second to collect his thoughts before going on, "Hear me out on this, but we need something where the aliens don't need to speak, yet where they are going to act just like a human."</p><p>"I'll ask again, what are you thinking?"</p><p>"A Safari."</p><p>"A Safari?" The President repeats not sure if he just heard correctly, "How will that further our goals?"</p><p>"We can't speak with them at the moment," The advisor begins to say, "But the people will at least want to see that we are doing something. Anything. Half of them don't care what, just as long as we are trying to not start a War with an alien collective. A Safari requires little talking, but can show the Aliens are interested in our world and it can show that we are trying to make positive relations, so if war does come, the people will at least know we tried."</p><p>The president stops walking and begins to nod, "Alright, I like the premise, but if things go wrong, this is on your head."</p><p>/.../</p><p>HWV Accipitridae</p><p>"Fleet Commander on..."</p><p>Quirinus holds his hand up to the Turian speaking and says, "Please, relax. I'm not here for inspections." Not that inspections are his job anyway.</p><p>With the Turian pacified Quirinus enters the Accipitridae's primary munition centre where twenty people are working - at the moment however they are all stood watching their Fleet Commander enter their small 'Dungeon' as they call it, and wondering why he is there. Sitting down on a table, to show his relaxed demeanour, he says, "Relax," His presence is enough to get most Turians stood rigid backed, "I'm just checking in on the crew, making sure you have all eaten. Speaking of which, have you all eaten something hot in the last 10 hours?"</p><p>The Fleet Commander gets enough flared mandibles to be content that the crew have eaten. "Excellent, excellent. I know you have been stood to for an exceptionally long time now, however, the situation is not a typical situation by any means, and requires an exceptional response. What do you know of the situation?"</p><p>A crewman begins to reply, telling him the last update they received and the Fleet Commander grimaces a little, the munition crew seemingly have little clue as to what is actually going on outside of a new species being discovered. It is a failure on the passage of information, it is a failure on the ship's officers for ensuring information is flowing, and it is a failure on his own behalf for not gripping the ship's Captain for failing to ensure information is getting passed around. Just as the Fleet Commander begins to explain the current situation his omni-tool rings, "Yes?" He inquires.</p><p>"Fleet Commander," The voice of the Fleet Orchestrator says, "The Hanar vessels are moving to leave the theatre of operations. All 6 vessels are accounted for."</p><p>'Why would they do that?' Wonders Quirinus internally before saying, "Understood, when they have left the system you are to reduce the threat level back to 3."</p><p>"As you command," The Orchestrator says before ending the call, allowing the Fleet Commander to go back to his original tasking. After talking with the munition crew for around ten minutes the Fleet Command begins to move to the next crew he wishes to talk with, but he is stopped in the corridor as his Omni-tool rings once more.</p><p>"Fleet Commander Speaking," Quirinus says, a hand to his ear allowing him to hear better.</p><p>It is the fleets communication officer who is on the opposite side of the omni-tool, "Fleet Commander, the Human comms box is flashing, we have already requested the presence of Matriarch Benezzia and Councillor Tevos."</p><p>Before Quirinus even speaks he is already turning around and making the way to the bridge, and as he walks towards it he says, "Probably related to the Hanar leaving," Quirinus assumes out loud, "I will be back in ten or so minutes."</p><p>Arriving on the bridge almost 13 minutes later the Turian notices that Matriarch Benezzia and Councillor Tevos are already there, and waiting on himself. "Councillor," Quirinus says to Tevos, recognising her as the highest ranking member on the bridge before saying, "Matriarch, when you are ready." Tevos may officially carry the highest rank on the bridge, but on a Turian bridge, she has no power, the rank is symbolic and affords her the respect required.</p><p>After a quick blink from Tevos to give her approval, Matriarch Benezzia says, "Then we shall proceed, are the recording devices active?" With a flare of a Turian's mandibles, Benezzia is happy they are being recorded and leans forward to press a big red button on the Human device, resulting in a General's holographic form appearing on top of the box a few seconds later.</p><p>After listening to the human speak for a few moments Benezzia frowns before turning to Tevos, "The Humans have offered us an 'animal tour' on their planet for two days. I am not entirely confident in what form this animal tour will take."</p><p>Tevos immediately turns to Quirinus, "Despite the unknowns, they are reaching out to us, and showing positive relations, showing values we as a citadel encourage, we can not turn this opportunity down."</p><p>Quirinus thinks hard for a moment, considering the possible outcomes and strategic position it would put him in before blinking to Tevos, "I concur. How many people are they permitting?"</p><p>Benezzia quickly asks the question before saying "12. We can bring guards in this number."</p><p>"On their world, 12 men will do little to nothing if violence erupts," Tevos remarks, "We can make the best use of this by sending people who can best show the galaxy as a whole, so 4 Asari, 4 Turians and 4 Salarians."</p><p>"Only Asari and Salarians in my fleet have come from the Avian," Quirinus tells Tevos, which surprises no one as his fleet is a Turian peacekeeping fleet and not a citadel peacekeeping fleet. "As for Turians, I will provide Captain Corvinus, Captain Remus, and two more from the Avian."</p><p>"Not yourself?" Asks Tevos.</p><p>"As much as I would love to go, no." Quirinus says, "My position is here, where I can be used if needed. I must also insist that you do not go, your position makes you a VIP."</p><p>"We can agree on who should and should not go later," Tevos informs, "But for now we must inform the General of our decision."</p><p>After informing the General Benezzia turns to the Turian Fleet Commander and says, "They are pleased. They also ask if we follow their ship in 5 hours time to the destination. He says it will be hot and cold."</p><p>Quirinus flares his mandibles in understanding.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Meanwhile - Star Base 1</p><p>Shepard looks up to her commanding officer with obvious confusion, "No armour and nothing larger than a concealable pistol?" She asks aloud making sure she has heard correctly, "Also respectable hot weather clothing and cold weather? Sir, what exactly has my team been signed up to?"</p><p>"A Safari that takes the aliens to some of Earths most exotic locations. Your team will be providing close security."</p><p>Shepard takes a second to rub her brow before saying, "I assume there is more protection than just my squad."</p><p>Shepards superior nods, "Yes. Helos are in flight, and the Army is securing the perimeter of areas you shall be visiting. You are simply there to provide assurance and protection for the VIP's."</p><p>"Who are the VIP's?"</p><p>"The president is going." The 1 up says.</p><p>This news causes Shepard to frown in confusion, "What is wrong with the secret service?"</p><p>"Because," Begins the 1 up, "Your guys would wipe the floor with them. Secret service is not augmented as they are required to operate in public. If they were augmented, they would stick out like a sore thumb."</p><p>"Fair enough."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. A new world</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Citadel explorers visit Earth.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Tevos' awaits for the door to close behind the Fleet Commander before voicing her thoughts, and with the room secure from prying ears, she says, "I will be attending this visit."</p><p>The fleet Commander does not like the idea one single little bit, he knows that if anything happens down on the planet below, he will be powerless to help, even with his fleet in orbit. He does not know if he outguns the locals, so he can not use force to get his people back, and if Matriarch Benezzia attends - which is most likely - then he can not speak with the locals so he can't use diplomacy to get them back. The most he could do is wait for the reinforcements the Citadel is sending to his location.</p><p>Tevos watches the internal conflict within the Turian Fleet Commander carefully before adding, "History has shown the first invite to an alien world tends to show off what that species thinks is important. Your species showed a great military parade, the Salarian's showed a plethora of mathematic equations our ambassadors had no hope of understanding and the Hanar showed their profound understanding of Prothean technology. No doubt you can see how those visits foreshadowed what input into the galaxy said species had."</p><p>The Turian breathes out heavily as he moves to a window and looks out of it, the planet below him is way too blue for his liking. "If you go and get killed, the Hierarchy will not forgive me like your own species would. I will be taking a great risk allowing you to go down there."</p><p>Tevos can fully understand the Turians resistance, failure is not looked upon kindly within the Hierarchy, and if she is 'lost' under his watch, then the news would go far and wide, meaning the Fleet Commander would probably never see the day of light again for bringing the supposedly impervious Turian navy into disrepute. Unfortunately, Tevos also knows the repercussions would not just hit the Fleet Commander, it would affect his entire family, anyone who shares his blood would feel some of the Higherarchy's frankly unforgiving wrath. Taking a second to gather her thoughts and arguments, Tevos then says, "It is a risk you accepted when you were commissioned as a Fleet Commander within the Turian Imperial Navy. Yes, I may not be a part of your Hierarchy, and can not formally order you to let me go, but I am the Asari Councillor in the depth of First Contact. The reward far outweighs the risk in this instance."</p><p>"Yes." Quirinus muses, more to himself than to Tevos, "You are the Asari Councillor. I will not prevent your attendance; however, I will raise a formal complaint. Your actions are not just risking myself, but the lives of my men." This complaint will get far in the Hierarchy, whose Populus is easily motivated by nationalism, and the idea the Asari are putting Turian lives in unneeded risk will rile more than a few.</p><p>Tevos suppresses a wince, she does not like to hear that her actions are putting others at risk. "It is a risk you agreed to..."</p><p>The Councillor is interrupted by the ship's internal speakers. "Fleet Commander to the bridge."</p><p>With a raised mandible the Turian turns on the spot and walks the short distance to the bridge, Tevos in tow. "Sitrep." He demands the moment he is on the deck.</p><p>The ships captain replies to him, "A new vessel has made an appearance. Just arrived on a vector of 634,240,009." Tevos quickly glances at a secondary screen, with the mentioned vector in mind the new ship is not facing the Turian fleet.</p><p>"Show me," Quirinus says as he turns to the view screen, and shortly a large vessel is on the viewscreen, the ship is vastly different from typical human design - instead of being sleek looking and predatory, the vessel looks like an absolute bruiser. Instead of the impossible black's the Turians have come to typically associate with human vessels, the ship is almost a shiny gunmetal colour, which accentuates the sharp angles of the ship. Tevos looks on with a little concern, while the other vessels that have decloaked have been obvious warships, they were rather small and did not really look dangerous, this vessel, however, is different. If anything, Tevos thinks to her self, it looks like this ship is something that is meant to be seen, something that is meant to deter actions. As they watch the mega vessel, 6 stealth ships momentarily decloak next to it before recloaking, their stealth technology making them invisible. Swallowing a little Tevos asks, "How large is it?"</p><p>"5 km," Someone on the bridge replies, "It has just appeared from nowhere, and it is not registering on Ladar."</p><p>Tevos clenches her fists a little, she does not like how much this species seems to favour stealth technology, it makes her think that they could be very secretive and will keep to themselves, or worse yet, be deceitful. She also hates how this species seem to have built a ship bigger than the Destiny Ascension, but she pushes this to the back of her mind, she can not fill her mind with jealousy or fear right now in case it causes any prejudice against them. After a moment for the bridge crew to observe the vessel, Tevos turns her head to hear Quirinus say, "Senior crew members in the briefing room, 5 minutes."</p><p>Tevos follows the senior crew members in and stays to the corner of the room, she wishes to hear what is about to be discussed, in case she needs to add any input. Quirinus begins after ensuring all who are supposed to be in attendance is actually present. "I'm sure by now you have all heard of the latest development," He begins, and sure enough all the Turians flare their mandibles or verbally acknowledge the comment. "Then I wish to make it known I've come to the conclusion that this species has capabilities outside of what we are equipped to deal with. We know they have numerous stealth vessels, and now mega vessels well beyond dreadnought classification. We know they have plasma technology, and other advanced technologies reported from the rescued members of the Avian. Captain Remus has informed me of paintings that show battles of all manners. We are not dealing with rookies here but a species that finds an old friend in battle."</p><p>The Turian pauses for a second to look at Tevos before going on, saying, "Now, against my wishes, Councillor Tevos is going to be taking a ground party to their world. If anything happens, there will be no rescue party. We will withdraw to RV with the citadel fleet. Make no mistake, we are in thresher maw territory here, we do not know how numerous they are, how grown up they are or how hungry they are, and as you all should know from training, you do not stay in such territory. Prepare your people for a fighting withdraw."</p><p>The Fleet Commander takes another moment before turning once more to face Tevos, where he then says, "I can not protect your ground party, nor will I order anyone to partake in your visit."</p><p>Tevos gives the Turian a long slow blink before telling him, "I respect your reasoning, but as we discussed, I can not turn this opportunity down."</p><p>"Then your shuttle will leave in five hours."</p><p>/.../</p><p>5 hours later</p><p>Tevos finds herself sitting in a window chair of an unarmed shuttlecraft, she placed herself there specifically so she could view the planet as they come to land. The last five hours have been rather hectic if she was honest, people were given immune system jabs of all kinds to help boost their immune response incase the unknowns have anything nasty in their system, omni-tools were outfitted with specialist recording equipment and software from the medicine world so they could scan the biology of the planet below. Matriarch Benezzia has given the lucky 12 going planetside a few phrases in Prothean to learn, simple things such as 'sorry', 'hello' and 'thank-you'. Tevos herself has given a lesson on basic etiquette, so as to help reduce instances from misunderstanding, and lessons what to look for in this new species - behavioural and cultural. Emergency communication devices have been hidden in the kit of the intrepid 12, clothes of all sorts have been packed, some salvaged from the Avian for the Asari crew, and any sensitive equipment on the shuttlecraft has been stipped so as to reduce the damage a captured shuttle could do - even the navigation systems were wiped clean to prevent the aliens finding their homeworlds.</p><p>Hearing the airlock on the shuttle seal shut shortly followed by a split second of zero gravity as the shuttle left the Fleet Commanders Dreadnought, Tevos' can feel a flutter in her stomach, a flutter of nerves. She did not for one second believe the Humans were like the Yahg, but she could not get the idea out of her head, she puts it down to nerves. After a few minutes, the shuttlecrafts pilot, Captain Corvinus, speaks over the intercom, announcing that they have RV'd with a human vessel that will guide them down to the planet. Standing from her chair Tevos makes her way to the front of the shuttle and looks out the forward window, there she sees a small craft, dark grey in colour and triangular in shape guiding them. Looking down to the shuttle's controls, Tevos notices that like most other human things, this vessel does not register on Ladar, and it makes her wonder why the Humans favour stealth so much.</p><p>As they descend to the planet Tevos quickly gets the impression that the ride down is also going to be a small tour in its own, first they approach the station they were temporarily held on, only to then venture above the planets north pole and above the ringworld, where glowing defences of all kinds could be seen on the construct - no doubt to take it would demand a fleet in its own. The orbital world, which worries Tevos a little, looks nothing like a Prothean construct; instead, it is of its own design, and the habitat area on the inside looks almost like a strip of earth has been taken from the planet and transplanted onto the construct, there are oceans and forests, cities and towns. Next, the shuttle takes a voyage to a small, but dangerous-looking Satelite, it is almost 25 meters wide by 25 meters long, but one could not miss the glowing cannon on it, the thing looks ready to fire on a seconds notice and in truth the platform intimidates Tevos. What she does not know is she is looking at one of Ultron's many platforms. Tevos understands the message, why she is being shown this satellite, it tells her the world is defended, and its cannons are primed. After going unusually slow past the defence installation, the human vessel guides them to yet another installation, this time the construct is a doughnut in shape, and the human vessel passes right through the centre.</p><p>Tevos's vessel follows and the moment they pass through the centre of the doughnut the communication console flares into life as signals of all sorts bombard the ship, signals her shuttle does not know how to translate or understand. It puzzles Tevos why they can only now detect the human signals, but she supposes that some human tech must be blocking them from reaching outer space. "Councillor, you may want to see this," She hears the Corvinus call to her.</p><p>Tevos turns her attention to the Avians ex-captain, and he points to a console, "Traces of heavy isotopes in the atmosphere. Evidence of a nuclear event, maybe a few hundred years old."</p><p>Tevos slowly blinks, for some reason she is only a little surprised by this announcement, but it saddens her, she had hoped for a peaceful species, but her hope is fading the more she sees. Returning to her seat Tevos begins to look out her window, and is intrigued as the shuttle flies over some great metropolis, but the lack of apparent sky cars perplexes her, how does this society move from one location to another? Do they walk everywhere, or are they like the Batarians, where only the most senior ranks of government are allowed to own and use sky cars - but even then you can see some sky cars buzzing around when you fly over a Batarian city - but this city has none that she can see. What she is happy to see, however, is more than a few large green area's, it is always a nice change to see a city with plant life these days she thinks. Soon, the city is long behind them, and Tevos is looking down at a wide-open space in front of a quaint old looking building, two stories in height by maybe 50 meters long, it is decorated at numerous points with pots of vividly coloured flowers. The old building is made from what appears like slate rock and is positioned on top of a hill which overlooks a vast open area. In the far distance, snow-peaked mountains can be seen, but before the great mountains, there is an enormous green forest that is occasionally crisscrossed by an almost baby blue in colour river. Immediately in front of the building, there are maybe two dozen people gathered, and a wide red carpet that leads out up to a hundred meters is laid in front of the front door. The shuttle lands just past the carpet as Corvinus feared that had they landed on the carpet, the static that has inevitably built up on the shuttle's hull would inevitably ignite the carpet.</p><p>With the shuttle landed safely, Tevos stands from her chair and makes her way to the back door of the shuttle with the rest of the craft's occupants, here she waits for a few moments with the rest of the crew. Before disembarking the shuttle, the craft must run through a few processes; first, the hull must lose its static charge, this only takes a second at best, but the shuttle must also equalise its internal pressure with the external atmospheric pressure, this must be done slowly for the crew's comfort.</p><p>As the atmospheric pressure equalises Tevos moves to the back of those waiting to get off, taking her place in the order of people to disembark. First, Corvinus will depart the shuttle with Benezzia, then a Salarian and Turian will disembark, then an Asari and Salarian. Tevos will be one of the last to leave the craft, still in an attempt to hide her importance - she knows this could come back to bite her in future negotiations, but she hopes with how this species favours stealth, that they will understand the need to hide her status.</p><p>Seeing the light above the shuttles rear door turn from a blue hue to a red colour, Tevos awaits for the expected, and soon she can hear Corvinus say, "Atmospheric pressures matched. Opening shuttle doors now." It does not take long for the shuttle to react, and the doors slowly begin to lower from their locked close positions, and as they creep open, some sounds begin to fill the air. It does not take long for the Asari to figure out that the sounds belong to what must be stringed instruments, due to the similarities with not only Asari stringed instruments but also Turian and Quarian instruments. If one is familiar with music from the various species, which Tevos is, one can find similarities and familiar tones in set types of music. For example, music with aggressive undertones can often be found to have harsh sounds, for example, sharp drums being played at high speed, and traditional military music can be found to have a slow but steady rhythm, something troops can march to. Fortunately, Tevos can not hear a tune that would be suitable for a Turian military parade, or in a hate film produced by Krogan Terror Cells, instead, the tune filling her ears is more of a soft melody, and it reminds her of a tune which plays on an Asari discovery program that she watched as a young maiden which showcases the new worlds intrepid explorers have found in their journeys. It is fitting, she thinks, that it will be to a similar tune that she takes her firsts steps onto this new world.</p><p>Leaving the shuttle, Tevos follows Corvinius and Benezzia as they lead the group of 12 up the red carpet, and as they walk the small distance, Tevos can see the brass and string band that are playing, they are positioned under an overhang on a balcony on the first floor of the building, which hid them from sight as they come to land. Tevos also takes a few other mental notes, the temperature is not hot, but nor is it warm, its at just the right temperature, and the air smells pleasantly clean, with a small tinge of local flora life, it is as if it has just been produced in the nearby forests and not yet had the chance to be polluted. She has been to some industrialised planets where the industry has made the air pungent to the nose no matter where you go, so it is nice to see that this has not happened to this world - yet. As Corvinus reaches the building, he is met by a human who is not overly tall in height, maybe 5 foot 10, 5 foot 11. As Benezzia and Corvinus come to a standstill the band that was playing are turned down so that they do not drown out any conversations, and a few words are exchanged between Benezzia and the human, but Tevos can not hear what is said, so she focuses on the facial expressions. The human seems for the lack of better words merry, Benezzia is hiding her genuine emotions behind what Tevos has come to learn is her false smile, and Captain Corvinus is looking a little lost in all honesty, but he is being reciprocal to the human - a good sign.</p><p>Behind the lead human Tevos can see a few other humans, some she recognises some she does not, one she does remember encountering previously has bright green hair, and is watching her group with careful eyes. After going over a few other human faces, Tevos quickly comes to the conclusion that these are the soldiers that rescued her from the Avian, but instead of being in armour they are in civilian dress, but what concerns her a little is their size. Compared to the lead human, they are tall, and all of them look very athletic, not bulky, but physically fit. Eventually, Tevos is forced to look away from the soldiers and to Benezzia who is approaching her with the lead human. Arriving at Tevos's location Benezzia speaks to the human, exchanging a few words before telling Tevos, "This is the human leader, President Dallas."</p><p>The human says a few words before holding his hand out while smiling and Tevos gives it a small shake, knowing from other interactions that this is a greeting to humans. Once the handshake comes to an end, the Turian to her side also has his hand shaken, before the President moves onto some others, allowing Tevos to go back to her previous observations. Looking back to the building Tevos can see what looks like a man working on what could possibly be a camera system, which does not surprise her, she suspects this species will want the event documented as would her own - maybe the humans would provide some footage for the Citadel's archives if she requests it.</p><p>With the lead human now acquainted with his guests, he invites them inside, and Tevos follows with the rest of her group into the building. Getting inside the building, Tevos is surprised to find its interior looks modern, unlike the buildings outside, for some reason she anticipated and half wanted to find something old and antique looking, something that would match the exterior of the building. She does not have long to dwell on this thought, however, as she is directed into a small room that has a large circular table in the centre of the room, and at the far end of the room is some large glass windows that allows the rooms occupants a good view onto the mountains in the distance.</p><p>At the circular table in the centre of the room there are 15 chairs, 12 Tevos assumes is for herself and her fellow intrepid explorers, one she also believes is for this Presidential figure, but the last two she is uncertain of. It does not take long however for the 2 other chairs to be filled, the first empty chair is filled by the green-haired human, and the second is filled by someone she is unfamiliar with, but someone she is sure will be introduced in good time. To the President's immediate right sits Benezzia, which makes sense to Tevos, as she is the only one who can hold a conversation with this species, and to his left sits the green-haired woman. On the table in front of everyone but the humans, is a single black slate of glass, 16cm long, by 7 cm wide, by 1 cm deep, its purpose is lost on herself.</p><p>The President begins to speak to Benezzia once everyone is seated, and Tevos guesses that the two are struggling to really communicate effectively. Tevos reckons this because of a few mannerisms displayed by the human, his speech slows down more than a few times, he repeats a few phrases and tries different singular words every now and then if it looks like Benezzia is grappling for understanding. After a few minutes of back and forth, Benezzia eventually turns to look at the rest of her group, and announces, "The President is grateful that we accepted their offer to come to their world and is excited to show us what wildlife their homeworld has to offer. To the Presidents left, the one with green hair, is Captain Shepard, whose team is providing security for ourselves, and to her left is our tour guide, Doctor Marlee." Tevos turns her eyes to look at Doctor Marlee, and can't help but notice how different looking he is to the other two humans in the room. First of all, his skin colour is more than a few degrees darker, and the skin around his eyes make his eyes appear to have a different shape, his hair is shorter too, but it also seems to have a different texture. With this in mind, it comes to Tevos that this species is likely to be genetically diverse, and from other discovered species, namely the Quarians, volus and the Turians, species with major genetic diversity typically has numerous different cultures, each one as unique and varied as the last. This type of cultural diversity while fantastic to discover can make integrating the species into a collective of others difficult, as a basic set of rules which may apply to one culture may not apply to others. An excellent example of this is with the Quarians before the morning war, in one culture the judiciary system worked in a court of law with Quarians observing the evidence and making a decision on the type and severity of the punishment, yet in another, it worked off a very unique point system which almost allowed you to get away with crimes if your 'points' was above a certain amount - A computer would calculate this. Accommodating for these different types of systems Tevos can remember reading was a difficult task for the ambassadors at the time.</p><p>After the Doctor waved a hand and said a single word, Benezzia went back to consulting with the President, this time however she speaks for a considerably longer time before turning to once more say, "The main events list for ourselves is tonight we relax in this hotel, tomorrow at sunrise we leave in a 'motor car' for a safari, where we return to this location in the evening, then the day after we will be taking a tour of the ocean's wildlife. First, however, we have a few briefs for our safety."</p><p>The first brief Tevos receives familiarise's her with the black slate of glass on the desk in front of her, and it turns out that this little piece of glass is this species equivalent of an omni-tool. It is a computer, phone, scanner and camera all in one, and after a quick lesson Tevos can use the device to take a picture, record a video, call security and others in the away team. Tevos is sure that the device is capable of so much more, but without understanding the human language, she would never be able to operate the device to its full potential. After this brief, the green-haired woman gives an essential summary on security affairs, which boils down to not attacking the President, not leaving the hotel without an escort, and not using any weapons they may or may not have with them. If there is an incident, the human's team will 'deal with it', whatever that means, and her own people are to 'get their heads down' and keep out of danger.</p><p>Finally, the Doctor gives them the final brief of the day, which gives Tevos a glimpse into what to expect in the next day or so. The man drew their attention to one of the windows which looks out over the surrounding scenery and just like magic the window turned into a type of TV. The TV plays a video which showcases a few animals, and the Doctor would occasionally stop the video in order to talk about some animals, mostly it was to say to avoid, and not touch or approach them. Really, Tevos thinks that what the Doctor is talking about must be basic stuff to most humans, but it still interests her anyway, mostly because it is showcasing some of the animals they are going to be shown.</p><p>With the final brief over a worker from the hotel enters the briefing room and Tevos is guided through the hotel and to a door, which opens upon presenting her slate of glass to a sensor on the wall next to the door. When the door opens it reveals to Tevos her hotel room for her duration on Earth, and taking a few steps inside Tevos looks around with intrigue, wondering what sort of quality has been prepared for herself. In her first few steps inside her room, she is mildly impressed, the accommodation is spacious, immaculately clean, fully equipped and leaves a warm cosy feeling in her gut - if she were provided with this accommodation on a visit to any citadel connected world she would be happy with it. What impresses her the most, however, is how the main feature of the room is a large glass window that looks out over the scenery surrounding the hotel. With her room explored Tevos leaves it to find Benezzia, which isn't a hard task as her entire party have been situated on the same floor, and Benezzia is in the first room.</p><p>Entering Benezzia's room Tevos eyes are immediately attracted to the window of the room, or rather the lack of window, instead of a window to admire the local surroundings Benezzia seems to have some sort of entertainment device, which is playing what Tevos assumes is a local news channel. "You do not have a window?" Tevos asks Benezzia.</p><p>"I do," The other Matriarch responds before approaching the entertainment device and tapping on its side, which causes the display to instantly fade and be replaced with a translucent glass window. Tapping on the glass again at the same location causes the entertainment device to return, still on the news channel. At the moment the TV is muted, and the hosts seem to be talking about some sort of industry factory if the occasional videos that are playing are at all related to the story. Tevos turns her head from the TV and to Benezzia, asking, "So, what is in the itinerary for the rest of the evening?"</p><p>"We have an evening meal in two hours time, but till then we are free to explore this hotel, it is supposed to have numerous attractions for us to explore."</p><p>Tevos widens her eyelids a little, "We just ate a large meal before leaving. Have you been told of what attractions are for us to find?"</p><p>Benezzia blinks her eyes slowly in agreement, she too ate a large meal before coming down to the planet, and she wished the humans had told them to expect a meal, but she can understand why the fact may have got missed, they must be running around with their heads on fire right now. "Yes, I believe I will be forcing it down too. As for attractions, I have been told of a 'holo-suite', a gym, a spa, a garden, a swimming pool, bar, and a games lobby."</p><p>"Holo-suite seems like it could be interesting..." Tevos begins to reply but turns her head as she sees a large red headline flash on the news program, and is not at all surprised when she sees footage of her shuttle landing and shortly after her away party disembarking the shuttle to meet the President. "I would imagine that banner says breaking news," Tevos says.</p><p>"Hmm," Benezzia agrees, "I am hoping for them to show us some of the population's reactions. Even if we can't understand what they are saying, we may be able to judge their reactions from their actions and behaviours alone."</p><p>Tevos continues to watch the program with Benezzia for a short time before they realise that what they are hoping to see may not come on the news program, and that they are better off exploring what other things this hotel has to offer.</p><p>/.../</p><p>/.../</p><p>Hanar Vortex</p><p>Ava finds herself sat in the corner of the room she is confined to, knowing that whatever the aliens have planned for her, she has no escape. After helping the still unconscious alien the best she could, she explored every single inch of the room, looking for anything which could be of use in her situation, but this cell is truely thorough, she couldn't even get her fingers in any gaps to try and pry the doors open. Hearing the alien begin to stir a little, Ava looks up, but the alien has only rolled over, and is still not awake, so she goes back into her own thoughts. Thankfully Ava thinks, she only charged her cells up 36 days ago, which means she will probably have another 94 days till she will need to recharge. With power-saving measures active Ava quickly calculates that she could last 112 days, but this would mean reducing her core temperature to 293 kelvin, something which could give her away as being synthetic. She could also reduces motor functions, that would provide her with a maximum of 2 additional days, and she could reduce her processing power, but that would effectively reduce her intelligence as her thinking prowess would be reduced, although it would give her an additional 6 days. With a half defeated sigh Ava realises that she will only be able to extend her battery life by two days, she does not wish to give away that she is a synthetic and she wants all her thinking prowess right now if not more, otherwise she fears she will never see Human space again, and those she is supposed to care for on the mining station.</p><p>Seeing some movement in her peripheral vision, Ava looks to the injured alien and sees it is starting to move some more, which in Ava's mind is neither a good thing nor a bad thing. It could be good because she can learn about the alien, but bad because whatever this thing is, it could ultimately attack her. It is another 10 minutes till the alien actually stirs into a conscious state, and upon seeing her, the alien immediately scurries back into the far corner of the room on all its fours, where it then stares at Ava. Ava watches the alien closely, carefully scrutinising it with her eyes that dimly glow purple to tell a human she is a synthetic. Ava can see the alien's chest rising and lowering rapidly as the alien takes hurried breaths, and Ava notices its eyes are quickly glancing around the room, probably searching for something it can use. If this were a Human, Ava would be sure it is petrified, which tells Ava it is likely to act erratically.</p><p>Ava continues to watch the alien from her position in the far corner of the room, and every now and then she would slowly raise a hand to scratch her nose, or brush her hair from her face, the acts were not required, the hair in her face does not hinder any of her functions nor the 'itchy nose', but the actions make her seem more organic. All of a sudden, there is a loud clunk that reverberates around the ship, and Ava can hear some loud and heavy footsteps making their way towards her cell. Standing from her position on the floor, Ava moves to the back wall of the room and looks to the rooms single door, anticipating the aliens who captured her. Ava notes that the blue alien has joined her, positioning herself also on the back wall of the room, albeit it as far away as possible from herself, and it occurs to Ava that the blue alien must have made the decision that the approaching aliens are more dangerous than herself.</p><p>It is not long till the door opens, and a massive alien walks through, in its hands, it carries a tremendous looking weapon that moves continuously from pointing at Ava, to pointing at the blue alien. The alien, Ava thinks, looks like half a mix between a bat and a toad, but if she had to give them a name, she would definitely settle with toad face, for some reason it just feels right to her. The alien barks something at her, but Ava can not comprehend it, the language is lost to her; however, the blue alien seems to have a look of recognition, but it does not move. The large alien barks the same few words again, and Ava's auditory receptors note the alien's speech has a decrease of half an octave, probably in response to having to repeat itself. Toadface turns its huge weapon to the blue alien and says something again before reaching out and grabbing her by the arm, where it then tosses her towards the door where another toad face grabs her by the shoulder and frogmarches her somewhere. Ava suspects that she is next.</p><p>Sure enough, Ava finds a huge reptilian-like claw grabbing her shoulder, and she is marched through the ship and through the airlock she used to initially enter the vessel, and looking around in the harsh sunlight, Ava concludes she must be in a dock of some kind, she can see numerous other aliens, some of a species she has never seen before, and many different type of craft that have all landed on this world. With a rough push forward Ava walks behind another toad face which is guiding the blue alien. In front of the blue alien is one of the slim green aliens that had come to talk to her on Sevastopol, it appears to herself that this is the lead alien.</p><p>The group begin to walk up the docks, and as they walk Ava can see numerous eyes turn to herself, it would seem, at least to Ava, like she has dragged a lot of attention to her small group, and she suspects it is because maybe she is an alien they have never seen before. As she walks, she also notices a few things of interest; notably, more than a handful of people, of various species, are either completely naked, or mostly naked, and these naked people do not seem to hold eye contact at all; instead, they seem to favour to look to the floor. In addition to the naked people, it would also seem like people are intimidated by the Toad faces because where ever they go, people part for them. After walking almost 300 meters up the dock, Ava's small group arrive at a tall building that is maybe 400 meters in height, but before walking through the buildings front door, the lead alien of Ava's group is stopped by two 5 foot tall aliens that have four eyes, the aliens are armed with what looks like assault rifles if Ava had to guess. The four-eyed aliens, now to be known as Four Eyes to Ava, bark some words to the lead alien, and after some commotion between the lead alien and the Toad Faces, the Toad Faces hand over their weapons.</p><p>With another thrust on her shoulder from behind Ava begins to follow the Toad-face in front of her into the building, and soon they come to a stop at a desk where there is a que of around 16 people. In the que, some people look to be like herself and the blue alien, that being held captive by others. At the desk, three four eyed aliens are working, where they seem to be looking over the captured aliens before giving their captors directions. The group wait for almost a minute in the queue before yet another four-eyed alien approaches the lead alien of Ava's group, the alien is dressed well, or so Ava thinks. The two aliens begin exchanging words, with their eyes often jumping to view Ava before going back to discussions and eventually the four-eyed alien gestures to a door on the far side of the room and the lead alien begins to walk, in step with the four eyes. Ava feels yet another shove on her shoulder to get her walking and soon the group go through the door the four eyed alien gestured to, and Ava finds herself in an elevator, which if she had to guess, is about to go to the very top floor.</p><p>/.../</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Safari</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The citadel explorers embark on a Safari</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The evening meal was not what Tevos or any of her away team expected, instead of being served portions of various food, and having the origins of said food explained to them, which typically happens at a meal like this on First Contact, the Humans had instead provided a buffet for them, where they could choose what they please and leave what they did not like. Large trays of food had been put out on numerous tables, and she was told she could come and go to the trays as she pleases, and Tevos is quietly grateful for this, knowing in the back of her head she is not truly hungry having just eaten before heading for this world. It is also wise of the Humans, Tevos thinks because without actually putting food in front of them, they are reducing the pressure on her to eat food she may not like, or even consuming items which may be inedible to her own biology.</p><p>The effort which went into the buffet was a little surprising to Tevos if she was honest, the number of various foods available was astonishing for one restaurant to provide, but if anything it is a good sign that the humans are putting in the effort; she does wonder though as to how much of this food was made with their technology. With her omni-tool in hand, Tevos moves around the room till she finds something she likes the look of, and with a wave of her hand she scans the food item, allowing her omni-tool to determine its genetic base. If the food is Levo based, Tevos knows that it is safe to consume, but if its Dextro based, then the food will pass right through her, and she knows she will get little from it. Unlike what some old sci-fi books may say, Tevos knows that consuming a little Dextro based food will not kill her, in fact she would be unlucky if she had any side effects past feeling a little bloated. After a second to compute its findings, Tevos's omni-tool beeps and displays something she has rarely seen before, instead of just finding Dextro based amino acids or levo based acids, the food item is rich in both. With a frown Tevos scans another item, and then another, and all the results come back the same, and it appears to Tevos like Humans do not care about the genetic construct of their foods. This is not the first time a species has been discovered where they can eat both types of amino-acids, but it is a little rare, most species stick to one or another.</p><p>As Tevos sets her omni-tool to study another item Captain Corvinus moves to a tray of food by her left and scans it, and as he scans, he says, "How sensitive do you think the human nose is?"</p><p>Tevos spares the Turian a knowing glance, whereas she might get a little bloated from ingesting incorrect food types, Turians have a more embarrassing problem, which is why they tend to avoid levo based food like the plague when in public. Tevos replies to the Turian as she scans another food item, "I would not advise testing it... However, you are in luck, this is almost entirely Dextro based." Tevos looks down from her omni-tool and to the food she has scanned, and she is a little repulsed by what she sees, the 'food' looks to be a cooked creature of some kind, it has long thin twig-like legs, small beady black eyes and a hard pinkish shell around it - she knows this will not repulse a typical Turian though - a species which most popular snack could be best described as raw meat still on the bone. Come to think of it, Tevos realises that Turians are probably the most carnivorous of the advanced species in the galaxy, with not even a Krogan eating more meat than the average Turian. Tevos knows that it will quickly spread that some dextro food has been found, so she moves to another table, knowing that her last location is about to get swarmed with 4 Turians.</p><p>As she scans the various foods, she finds she bumps into Benezzia, who like every other Asari, Salarian and Turian, is scanning their food. "It would seem," Benezzia says as she scans, "That this species is very carnivorous. Everything I have scanned so far has animal products of some kind."</p><p>"Well," Tevos begins to reply before adding something to her plate which is mostly levo based, "Evidence would suggest to them being predators. Eyes in the front of the head with a rather narrow field of vision, sharp teeth at the front for tearing through meats, ears which seem to have evolved to be more efficient at hearing sounds from the front and sides. It would not surprise me the slightest to find that these are the apex predators of their homeworld."</p><p>"We share many similarities." Benezzia points out as she also puts a scoop of food onto her plate, "But we made the conscious decision to reduce our intake of animal products. This species does not seem to have made that step."</p><p>"But we do not have the technology they do to produce food from seemingly thin air." Returns Tevos, "If this technology were introduced to the masses in Asari space, I would not be surprised if Haifi, Plaio or Vaavi meat becomes widespread once more." While some may consider Asari to be almost vegan, it would be an inaccurate description as most Asari have no issues eating meat, they just believe most eat too much of the substance.</p><p>"If this technology were introduced without thought of the consequences, the farming industries would collapse." Benezzia states before sniffing a tray of some sweet-smelling food. "And as good as it is, it is dangerous to not only the Asari economy but the Citadel economy." Benezzia knows the largest argument against the technology will run along the lines of 'it will never be as good as the real thing', but Benezzia also knows the convenience of it will make many prefer it over the real stuff- it is for this very reason why fast food restaurants have taken off in Citadel space.</p><p>"But these people must feed their machines something to create this food," Tevos ponders aloud to Benezzia, "They can not create something from nothing; it is a basic universal principle. Whatever this 'something' is, that would be the new farming. But, I do agree, this technology would have to be introduced slowly, and what is its limits? Can it create technology itself, would I be able to create weapons with it? While it is very fascinating, it does worry me."</p><p>"Hmm," Benezzia replies as they wander back to a table to try the food they have put on their plates. In the centre of the table they are to eat from is their next problem, the humans have placed a dozen different type of drinks for her people to try. The lead human has taken to sipping some dark red substance, so Tevos reaches for the bottle containing this liquid first, and a quick scan from her omni-tool proves it to be safe to consume; the omni-tool also beeps to warn her that the drink is alcoholic. After passing the sniff test Tevos begins to pour the liquid into her own glass, and as she does, she says, "It always amuses me that alcohol is a universal constant, every species known is effected by it."</p><p>"It is a curiosity." Benezzia agrees before pouring herself some of the substance, "Maybe it is the goddesses way of bringing us all together, or maybe it is the universes form of a joke."</p><p>With the drinks poured, Tevos and Benezzia come to their next problem, looking down to the sides of their plates they see their eating utensils; and only one of the utensils is familiar to them. The knife both Tevos and Benezzia know how to use and are familiar with, but the other item that is in place of a 'Dinner Utensil' she is unsure of. She is used to using a tool which is designed a little like a spade, but this item has four prongs, and from watching the lead human, he seems to stab his food with it instead of shovelling it. With a shrug, the Asari councillor picks up the unusual utensil and begins using it, and the knack of the utensil comes quickly to her.</p><p>The next problem came as a complete surprise, her first few mouthfuls of food went well, with nothing to report on, however when she tries a slightly different food Tevos quickly realises something is wrong. First, she feels a slight discomfort on her tongue, and then it feels like she is eating and breathing pure fire. Tevos puts her eating utensils down and quickly takes a drink, but it only seems to make things worse. Feeling her blood rush to the surface of her skin, making her feel hot, Tevos calmly places down her eating utensils and scans the food again, running a more thorough test to see what is the cause of such a burning sensation.</p><p>"Tevos, are you well?" Benezzia asks her with a concerned frown on her face when she notices her friends change in demeanour.</p><p>Tevos does not look up but instead calmly replies, saying, "I am not certain, one of these food products is causing some discomfort. I would advise you to stop eating momentarily until I find the cause."</p><p>The scan takes maybe three or four times as long as a typical scan, and the longer Tevos waits the more the burning seems to intensify, her skin feels hot, her nose has begun to run and her eyes want to water. Eventually, a human waiter places a glass filled with a white substance in front of her, while giving her an encouraging gesture for her to consume it, and looking to the President he seems most encouraging for her to drink the item. Tevos does not jump into consuming the liquid, however, because whatever is causing the burning sensation could be in this liquid too. "Please scan that," Tevos asks from Benezzia as she begins to read over a more thorough scan of the food, but there are many unknown substances in the food that could all be a cause of the unexpected heat.</p><p>By the time Tevos has read the report, she is informed by the T'soni that the white drink is safe so the Councillor tries a little of the substance, and as if magic acts upon her the burning sensation dies down a little. Another gulp of the substance helps some more, and so Tevos takes to almost constantly sipping the white substance. "The good news," Tevos hears Benezzia say, "Is that the President has been watching you with concern. I do not think they expected your reaction. I've also tried to scan you, but you're not showing any unusual symptoms outside of increased outer skin temperature." Tevos blinks her slightly watering eyes, acknowledging the comment.</p><p>/.../</p><p>The rest of the meal was rather uneventful, not much was said, but it did not feel overly forced, and allowed Tevos to get an understanding of the Human habits when dining. It is not much to write home about, but right now, Tevos does not know what is truly important, the simple act of accepting the food and eating at the table could have a large impact on future relations, or it could have none at all, but when dealing with absolute unknowns, you must treat all factors as unknowns. After retiring from the evening meal, Tevos finds herself back in Benezzia's room and has turned the entertainment device back on, and after a moment of watching the device, she frowns a little. The program being broadcasted is currently displaying something she would expect to find on any 'good' Turian owned entertainment channel, and that is a recruitment advert. What worries Tevos is not the fact that the Humans are pushing a recruitment advert, she would expect anyone else to do the same in their shoes, but it was how evidently they were pushing for recruitment in response to her own people. "I do not know about you," Benezzia says to Tevos after a second of watching some of the recruitment advert, "But I did not come all this way to watch an obvious military video. Shall we visit this holo-suite or Gym?"</p><p>Tevos blinks and soon she finds herself walking into a room where this supposed holo-suite is located, but inside she finds a mostly empty room with a large ring in the middle. Around the ring is a few of the human soldiers, they all appear to be cheering a person in the middle who is exchanging blows with an unusually dressed human in maroon plated armour that features a helmet supporting a grotesque faceplate. It is an odd sight to the Asari as the armour looks like it would be suitable in pre-gunpowder warfare. The humans cheer on the unarmoured person who must be one of their own for a few moments till the armour-clad human has their comrade on the floor and in a yield position.</p><p>Tevos and Benezzia share a look before blinking to one another, while Asari may not like fighting, they do actually enjoy sparring, and believe it or not but sparring with short swords, albeit blunted swords, is a large sport on Asari worlds, and to be a champion in the sport would make you a hero to many Asari. After the defeated human removes themselves from the ring another steps in, but once more the unarmoured human is quickly incapacitated. Yet another figure steps into the ring, but instead of quickly sub coming to the armoured entity, this match lasts considerably longer, but once more the armoured figure prevails, and Tevos begins to suspect that maybe this armoured figure is not actually a Human, because the other humans are visibly exhausting themselves, but this armoured one does not seem to be affected by exhaustion at all.</p><p>The next contender in the ring, however, is victorious and Tevos watches with some amazement as the armoured warrior bows to the human and then vanishes into thin air, all to be replaced by a different warrior. Tevos is particularly impressed by the holographic technology - it is not that the Citadel does not have it, to the contrary, the Citadel does have some particularly advanced and impressive holo technology, but, what the Citadel lacks is the hard light technology that allows these humans to spar as they are doing so now. The next warrior to appear in the ring is different to the first plated armour warrior, this one has brass body armour over their torso, which outlines their muscular features, metal greeves, and an intricately designed helmet featuring some red feathers on the top. In one hand is a large circular shield, and in the other is a large spear.</p><p>"Shall we move on?" Benezzia asks, and Tevos blinks as she makes sure she has saved some footage of the human sparring. With some footage safely stored in her omni-tool, Tevos takes the lead in leaving the room, and it does not take long for the Asari duo to find their way to the bar, because as they got close, they could hear some gentle music being played on what could be a mix of brass and stringed instruments, and the sounds guided them without the need for directions. Arriving at the bar Tevos and Benezzia poke their head through the door, and Tevos witnesses a group of five people on a stage, dressed in white, and playing an array of instruments, two of the people are playing prominent brass instruments, one is playing a basic stringed instrument, its design has been found in most advanced civilisations, her own included, and one is singing, but one is playing a large instrument neither Benezzia or Tevos have seen before. "Shall we?" Tevos asks and Benezzia blinks, so Tevos leads the way to a table at the back of the room, where they could observe, but not be in the spotlight themselves.</p><p>The smooth music type is known to Tevos, but it is not a type that is played much in Citadel or Asari space, although Tevos does not complain, it is the type of music which allows your foot to get a mind of its own and tap along with the melodic beat; with this in mind Tevos begins to set her omni-tool to record, this is some local culture she could 'sell' to her people to advertise the humans and help them be accepted into the wider galactic community. As the band do their thing Tevos looks around the room, at the opposite side of the room, and in an equally dark corner to her own is the President, he seems to be in his own world as he works on some sort of contraption, typing away on what Tevos must assume is a keyboard, he seems oblivious that she is even there. Along the back wall, there is what can only be a bar, it has many bottled drinks displayed behind it, and a man impeccably dressed waiting to serve. In the centre of the room, and sat before the band, is a few different personnel, the first is a green-haired marine - she is sat on a table by her own, and with a mostly empty drink, then there are a few others sat on a circular table, a vast array of drinks are on the table, another table has the Safari Expert on.</p><p>As the jazz band continues to play, Tevos turns to Benezzia, "I was thinking, today could have ended incredibly differently had the Humans not worked out I was suffering and provided the white drink."</p><p>"Yes," Benezzia concurs, "I have also been thinking of this, but I think it must be worse for the humans, they invited us here and as it turns out, one of their food items is not palatable to ourselves. Had they not worked out the issue, and you reported ill, it could have easily caused a diplomatic incident."</p><p>"Yes," Tevos blinks, "I could imagine Quirinus would have been quick to demand our immediate return."</p><p>"Hmm," Benezzia humms in response. "First Contacts are infamous for small things going wrong, and I believe we truly did dodge a bullet today."</p><p>As the band begins to play another song Tevos is distracted as a man approaches with a tray of drinks, and looking at the man Tevos quickly realises that it is the President. The man says a few words to Benezzia before placing the drinks down and leaving, allowing Tevos to inquire, "What did he say?"</p><p>"Something about it being on the building, and to enjoy. I believe he must have used a colloquialism."</p><p>"Hmm," Tevos humms to herself before scanning the drinks and then picking up a glass of water, not wanting a foggy head for tomorrow. After maybe half a dozen songs the band eventually steps down from the stage, their instruments, however, are still on stands, making Tevos believe they may be back. "Shall we have a look at the boxy instrument?" Benezzia asks of Tevos, because just like Tevos, the T'soni has been listening to the sounds it has been producing and has come most interested in it.</p><p>Tevos blinks and stands with Benezzia to approach the instrument, and it would seem to the Asari that despite its boxy design, it is, in fact, a stringed instrument. The sheer amount of sounds it must be able to produce slightly bewilders Tevos, making her think she has underestimated the skills of the human that was playing it earlier. As Tevos begins to take a scan of the large device she hears the presidents voice and turns to see him talking with Benezzia. The two exchange a few words, with the President quite often gesturing towards the unknown instrument, but just as quickly as the President arrived, he seemed to finish the conversation and dissapear, leaving Benezzia to say, "Apparently, this device is called a Piano."</p><p>Sitting back down a short while later, Tevos predictions that the band is not finished is proven correct when the band returns, and they play a suspicious amount of songs that are piano-heavy, no doubt the President has had something to do with that, Tevos thinks.</p><p>/.../</p><p>The next morning started with breakfast just after sunrise, the food was not as extravagant as the previous night, but this surprises next to no one in the away team, mostly because breakfast to all known species is a light, and usually, an easy to prepare meal that sets them up for the day ahead.</p><p>After consuming her breakfast, which was once more heavy in animal products, Tevos is ushered outside with the rest of her people to find three open-air cars are waiting for them, resulting in Tevos musing to herself that she hopes it does not rain because she has not packed any rain-resistant clothing. Tevos quickly finds herself climbing into the first car with Benezzia and Corvinus, along with the Tour Guide, the President and the green-haired human. After a quick explanation from the tour guide that the entire area they are in is currently a wildlife reserve, meaning some animal sightings are not guaranteed, the cars begin to move, and from the sound of the car's engine, Tevos must conclude that they are using electric motors.</p><p>As they drive, Benezzia and the guide exchange a good amount of words before Benezzia turns to Tevos and Corvinus, "Our guide was just explaining that the first animals we are going to see are 'monkeys'. They are known to be mischevious and steal items from people." Tevos subconsciously feels for her omni-tool and feels some relief knowing that it is still there.</p><p>It is not long after the explanation that the cars slowly come to a stop near a lone tree, and a quick look at the branches allows Tevos to see the creatures they have come for, they are small Vorak like creatures, but they have far more dense coats of fur over them. It takes no more than 20 seconds after the car has come to a stop for one of the 'monkeys' to position itself on top of the car and peer inside to see what its occupants have brought for it. The guide slowly reaches out for the monkey, but it quickly comes clear that the guide is not reaching for the monkey, but rather offering the creature something, as it tentatively pinches something from out of his open hand and begins to eat from it. The guide smiles before turning to Benezzia and offering her some food items that look like nuts of some sort.</p><p>It is not long till the cars are swarmed with a dozen of the creatures, all of them taking food from people's hands, and heaving a comotion from the car behind Tevos turns just in time to see a Turian with one of these monkeys on his shoulder. The Turian appears stiff and uncertain, but thankfully, it is not looking like it is about to tear the monkey apart. As Tevos continues to look away she hears Benezzia call her name quitely, and looking towards the Matriarch, Tevos notices that she too has found one of these monkeys climbing over her, the creature is clinging to her right arm with one of its arms and both its legs, and with its other arm it is taking the food from her hand.</p><p>Hearing the guide say something, Benezzia then quietly says to Tevos, "Picture, picture." Getting the hint, Tevos pulls her omni-tool up, with the aim of getting a picture, but before she could take the photo the monkey has moved on, this time it is climbing on Corvinus. The Turian does not look happy to have become a climbing frame for the animal, but with a little persuasion from Tevos, the man smiles for a photo. By the time they come to move on and see the next animals the humans want to show them, almost everyone from the away team has had a photo taken with a monkey. In a few of the photos, there are humans and people from her away team, and Tevos knows for certain that these photos can be used to help show the humans off to the rest of the galaxy. Sure, the picture will show nothing more than her own people and the unknown humans bonding over something as simple as a monkey crawling over them in an attempt to reach food, but this type of content sells.</p><p>Soon, the small convoy roll to a stop at a new location, where the guide speaks with a hushed voice as he points out over a plain of mostly barren land. Looking with squinted eyes Tevos at first thinks the humans are pointing to some horned creatures but the Asari is quickly amazed as she watches a pack of varren like creatures emerge from some long grass and act as a pack to hunt the horned creatures. Tevos notes to herself that she does not like these 'Hyena' creatures so much.</p><p>The next animal on the agenda is apparently the largest land creature on this planet, and soon Tevos is looking down a 'Elephant', and Tevos is certain it is the largest land creature she has seen off Dekuuna, but what scares her the most is not its size, rather it is how quickly these land leviathans can apparently move. Should it decide to charge her, Tevos does not think she could survive its wrath without a healthy dose of biotics to back her. To Tevos's slight horror she is offered a ride on the creatures, where she spends approximately 20 minutes on the back of one, and Tevos can not help but think they seem far larger when you are sitting on their back. Fortunately, riding the creatures does provide for a good photo opportunity, however, so Tevos takes some rejoice in this fact.</p><p>After riding the elephants to a peaceful spot overlooking a river came lunch in the form of a 'barbeque', which was primarily meat products once more, before the adventure started again. The first stop was an indoor pen area, where Tevos comes face to face with a dozen birds, the one which stands out to her the most has large claws, a powerful looking beak, a large wingspan, and white feathers on its head. After a few moments to gawk at the bird, the group are taken outside, where a display shows the various birds swooping down to collect some prey. At the end of the demonstration, there is an oppotunity for a photoshoot, and Tevos is slightly amused by how the Turians are far more interested with the birds than any other creature they have come across yet - she is sure the Higherarchy will be getting a full report on them shortly - after all the logo for the Turian Hierarchy is a bird with a planet in each of its three claws.</p><p>The rest of the afternoon passes quickly, with horses, Lions, Meerkats, Otters, Panda's, Lizards and Hippos all making an appearance, but Tevos begins to suspect that the most important creatures are yet to come, she does not know why she suspects this, but something in her stomach tells her that it is true. Eventually, as the day nears an end, they are taken back to the hotel, where they are ushered into another room. The guide stands near the centre of the small room and tells Benezzia about some creatures, and Benezzia relays it on to the rest of the group. The name of the first creature, Tevos is told, is "Man's best friend," or "Dog," for short. After the brief introduction, a small handful of dogs are introduced to the room and a few humans begin to play with them, throwing balls, and physically touching them. As they play Benezzia speaks again, having been talking to the guide. "These creatures are supposed to be incredibly important to humans. They are said to become family when adopted. There is a lot of emphasis on their importance to humanity."</p><p>Tevos is not overly surprised by this, other species are known to keep pets, mostly the Krogan and their varren, and these dogs, despite coming in many shapes and sizes if the small selection of dogs in this room is anything to go by, look similar to varren in many aspects. What Tevos is glad to see, however, is how the dogs seem to be far more friendly, and far easier on the eyes - varren lack the fur and their skin is often crisscrossed with scars from battles they have been in. After a few moments Tevos is offered with the rest of her team to play with the creatures, and Tevos is more than glad for the opportunity to try interacting with the creatures if they are as important as the humans say they are. She also realises that if they are as important as the humans say, then she needs to try her best to make a good impression with the creatures. For her own part, playing with the dogs was an easy task, a few words of command got the dogs to drop their toys, and the dogs didn't seem to need any other instruction. They did, Tevos notes, seem to have an uncanny ability to read her thoughts, and act on it, they seemed incredibly capable of knowing when she was going to pick up the ball, where she was going to throw it, and when to back off. The Turians and Salarians did not seem to have as much luck, however, and the dogs were more apprehensive of them, maybe, Tevos thinks, this is in part due to how similar her own species is to the Humans.</p><p>After a while Tevos has to admit to herself that the creatures are playful, and she can see why the humans would want to keep them around, but the door to the room opens and Tevos quickly concludes that dogs will come a common pet across the galaxy, the puppies will provide many photo opportunities that she is sure will make the Asari crave them.</p><p>The second creature introduced once all the dogs are removed from the room are 'Cats', and while Tevos does admit they have an appeal to them, she quietly prefers the dogs.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Meanwhile</p><p>Maiden Rhea steadies herself as the lift comes to a halt on the top floor of the building and then prepares herself for the inevitable shove from the Krogan behind her when it wants her to move, and sure enough, the shove comes, forcing Rhea to follow the Drell that has captured her out of the lift and into a grand room. Rhea quickly glances around the room, and within a single glance, Rhea feels some dread enter her stomach. The room is grand, it has high ceilings, gold plated ornaments, a view across the entire city they have landed in and many fancy entertainment devices - and this can only mean one thing. Rhea quickly comes to a conclusion that whoever this room belongs to, it is probably a part of the Batarian aristocracy - which should not surprise her, the Batarian aristocracy are known for their purchase of rare slaves; something Rhea is sure the unknown alien behind her will be. This is terrible news to Rhea as the richer a slave owner, the more sophisticated is the technology which prevents slaves from escaping. As they come to a halt in the middle of the room, the Batarian offers the Drell a seat in a fancy green lounge chair, but Rhea is not afforded such luxury and instead finds herself forced down onto her knees with the unknown, not that she suspected any less from Slavers.</p><p>Whoever they are here to meet, it is obviously not the Batarian that lead them to their current location as a silence quickly forms between him and the Drell till a Krogan from behind says, "I can never remember security being this tight. Was it like this last time you were here?" The comment is aimed at the other Krogan.</p><p>The Batarian who is sitting with the Drell must have heard this so interrupts the Krogans to say, "With the approaching fleet, all hands have been called into service."</p><p>"Approaching fleet?" A Krogan replies back, "Who and how large are we talking?"</p><p>"A full Citadel battlegroup, commanded by the war criminal Caredeus Fannus. At last count, there are 7 dreadnoughts, including the Destiny Ascension." Rhea's eyes widen at the announcement, she knows the Primarch's Chosen is only sent on critical missions, and the Asari's pride vessel, the Destiny Ascension rarely leaves Citadel or Asari space. Whatever the Citadel are planning, it has certainly got a conflict of some kind in mind, and it plans on 'overkill'.</p><p>Rhea continues to silently listen as the Krogan releases a deep rumble, something aking to a sound of astonishment, "Been a long time since something that large was mustered. Where it heading?"</p><p>"You will find the correct terminology is 'Where is it heading' to which the answer is this region," The Batarian replies, "In response, the Hegemony is said to be sending a fleet."</p><p>"Nothing stopping that coalition battlegroup." The Krogan retorts, knowing the Batarian fleets are not as good as the Batarians like to think they are. "But I doubt..." The Krogan stops speaking as another Batarian that is finely dressed and surrounded by two guards enters the room; the Krogan Rhea thinks, probably knows he will be silenced if he keeps speaking.</p><p>The first Batarian who has brought them to this grand room stands before quickly gesturing for the Drell to follow suit, and then the first Batarian says, "Caretaker Tlalok, may I present Free Lancer Cadmael; he has brought a unique specimen for your consideration."</p><p>The second Batarian quickly flashes the unknown a curious look before turning to the Drell, "I do not recognise this species. Where did you find it?"</p><p>The Drell gives it a moment before saying, "We chased a Citadel vessel near relay 315. We found this in a gas giant on some sort of mining station." Rhea furiously thinks, and comes to the quick realisation that the Drell is not telling the truth, Relay 315 is in rather dull space with only a few barren rocks that barely classify as planets; meaning there are no gas giants near relay 315.</p><p>"Fascinating." The Batarian Caretaker says before approaching the unknown where it grabs it under the neck and forces it to look him in the eyes. "Very unique eyes, almost Quarian with how they dimly glow, but very pretty." Rhea must admit the unknown does have beautiful eyes, as do most Quarians, but the fact it glows purple is very unique; Quarians eyes, however, do not glow as bright as their masks make it seem, the masks amplifies the glow to help Quarians show their expressions. "Can it speak?"</p><p>"It can, but it is an unknown language."</p><p>"I see, I see," Muses the Batarian before dropping the unknown alien and turning his head to Rhea, "This one was pretty. What happened to its nose?"</p><p>The Drell takes a small pause before saying, "It required some extra encouragement in realising that escape is not an option."</p><p>The Batarian nods its head, "A Common story." The Batarian stops talking to the Drell and turns its attention back to Rhea to say, "You, Citizen code."</p><p>Rhea knows that revealing her Citadel Citizen Code could work for her, and against her, if she tells the truth then the Batarian will research her and then it is just as likely to sell her back to her mother for an extortionate price as he is to simply kill her, but after a moment to consider Rhea says "A537910X." She knows the Batarians will beat it out of her at some point, and she has no other code to give.</p><p>The first Batarian types this code into his omni tool before visibly grimacing and saying to the second Batarian, "Her mother is Matriarch Alena T'Vos."</p><p>Rhea watches as the second Batarian becomes very stiff before seemingly losing whatever fright he had, and the Drell momentarily seems to be a little surprised by the announcement. "Fascinating." The Batarian turns to another in the room to say, "Validate it." Without waiting for anything to be done the Batarian then turns to the Drell, and says, "Two very unique specimens indeed, so let us talk business."</p><p>The Drell does not dither, "250 Thousand for the Asari, and 10 Million for the unknown."</p><p>The Batarian nods its head a few times before replying, saying, "You know, the Citadel has released a bounty for information on a small fleet of vessels which matches your own fleets description, and checking your flight logs puts you in the vicinity of the dead Prothean planet where you were said to be operating."</p><p>Rhea watches as the Drell narrows his eyes, "Does the law in Batarian space not decree that we have immunity from such prosecutions when trading such items? If you failed to live up to such a saying, I suspect you would lose a lot of custom to rival trading establishments."</p><p>"Very true," The Batarian concedes, "However," The Batarian claps his hands twice, and a dozen armed Batarians enter the room from the elevator, "I noticed your unique product the moment you left the airlock, so I got curious some more and studied your flight logs in further depth. You have been through an uncharted Relay. Our laws do not protect you against this, and thus you have two options. Option one is you leave this room without a single credit, and find out how nasty a vortex filled with unpaid Krogan can be, or you can take your chances against my finest."</p><p>After a long heated discussion in which Rhea expected the Krogan immediately behind her to rip a Batarian in half at on point, Rhea's captors leave the room with nothing, leaving Rhea, the unknown and a few Batarians in the room. After the doors to the lift shut with Rhea's captors inside the first Batarian says, "I can confirm that the Asari is who she says she is. Apparently, she ran away from home young, and you know who has been searching for her since."</p><p>The second Batarian walks back and forth a little before saying, "Induct and glove her, and send a demand for 1 Million credits."</p><p>"Caretaker," The first Batarian says slowly, "Is it wise to anger the woman who dropped a dirty bomb on a run-away Turian colony so she could watch them die slowly of radiation sickness all because they disrespected her offer of protection? The same woman who fed Hanar to Varren because she was bored? The Asari is as cruel as God Niwitih himself."</p><p>"We are not a run away colony." The second Batarian dismisses with a waft of his hand, "And we have the defences of the Hegemony and her armies behind us, and for now, we are still a Citadel affiliated species. She wouldn't dare attack us, it would cause the Citadel to go to war with the Terminus systems."</p><p>"How long do you suspect we will be a part of the Citadel Coalition?" Asks the first Batarian, "Their fleet is almost upon us."</p><p>"Their fleet isn't here for us," The second Batarian replies as he approaches the unknown alien and looks in its eyes, "It is here for them; the Citadel has a first contact situation, and I will wager they have found something they do not like. I will let my cousin know on Khar'shan, and we can play the game." Batarian stocks are currently through the floor due to people expecting an invasion from the Citadel, so with this in mind people could easily gain a lot from the current situation. As war is not likely on the agenda anymore, Tlalok fears that once this information is known by the wider galaxies, many Batarian companies could have vast stakes bought up by stronger alien economies.</p><p>"As you wish," Rhea hears the first Batarian reply to the Caretaker, "I will prepare the long-range communications room for your imminent conversation."</p><p>"Yes yes," The second responds, "But first, have these seen to, have them taken to the appropriate wing."</p><p>The first Batarian brings his hands in front of him and displays them to the Caretaker, a Batarian show of respect, before issuing an order to some Batarians behind Rhea. Soon Rhea finds she is being forced onto her feet with the unknown and they are being marched through the room to a small wooden door. After unlocking the door Rhea is pushed through, as is the unknown, and looking around inside Rhea finds yet another Asari, a female Quarian, and a Salarian, all of who have stood by the bottom of their beds at attention and looking towards the door she entered. On top of the sentient beings, there is also a wide variety of exercise machines and a few wardrobes. "You," A Batarian says while pointing to the other Asari in the room, "Induct them."</p><p>"Without delay," The Asari who is potentially a Matriarch says before breaking her stance and moving towards Rhea as the Batarians leave the room. "Please come," The Asari says to Rhea while reaching out for a hand, "And I will fix your nose."</p><p>Rhea had almost forgotten about the dull ache in her nose and reluctantly blinks as she walks with the Asari who sits her down on an empty bed, for now, the unknown has been left alone, it seems content enough to just look around - which considering its situation amazes Rhea, the thing should be terrified. "What is the other thing?" The Asari asks Rhea, "We do not get the news often, so its discovery is new to me."</p><p>"I do not know." Rhea confesses, "It is new to me too, the Batarians were talking about a potential first contact."</p><p>"Can we communicate with it?" She then asks Rhea, to which Rhea clenches her fists slightly, "Well, that will make things complicated. Anyhow, I realise I have not introduced myself, I am Aesop, the Quarian is Nema Vas Ruire eil-Liux, the daughter of an Admiral in the Migrant fleet, and the Salarian is Adilynn, the daughter of a Salarian aristocrat."</p><p>Rhea thinks for a moment, a female Quarian is rare, they rarely go on their pilgrimage in order to help populate the species, and the daughter of a Salarain aristocrat is also going to be a 'trophy' slave, so what is so special about the Asari, "The Salarian and Quarian are worth something, either for being rare or who they are, and the unknown is very rare, so why are you here?"</p><p>The Asari smiles for a few seconds before holding her gloved hand out, "I am a grade 5 Ardat-Yakshi, I could ask the same question of yourself..."</p><p>Rhea gulps, realising that she is sitting next to a very dangerous, and very powerful Ardat-Yakshi. Level 5 Ardat-Yakshi's are almost unheard of, some even think they are myth, they are supposed to be able to kill with a mere brush of a hand, and have biotics powerful enough to make the most stalwart of Matriarchs tremble in their boots, but worse still is the supposed addiction these Asari have with melding. Eventually, Rhea replies, "Rhea, Rhea T'vos, daughter of Alena T'vos."</p><p>"Oh," Aesop replies with some surprise, "I was not expecting that." The Asari looks away momentarily to see the unknown test a bed out before sitting down on it. "I suspect our Master will try and sell you for an extortionate price."</p><p>Rhea blinks, "Yes, I overheard 1 million. My mother will .Not. pay it."</p><p>"I am sorry to hear it." Aesop then looks to the Salarain and says, "Adilynn, please see to our other new fellow."</p><p>Once Aesop finishes speaking to the Salarian and turns her attention back to herself, Rhea blinks, "I fear it will bring excessive violence to this place. I have been running away from my mother for the last decade, and she has moved many rocks searching for me."</p><p>Aesop looks around before whispering, "Then I can hope." Aesop then slowly reaches up to Rhea's nose, "This will hurt for a second." The Asari does not give any delay in pulling Rhea's nose down, causing a hot pain to form in Rhea's nose, but true to Aesop's words the pain quickly dissipates. Aesop gives Rhea a few moments to fight the pain before saying, "Now, you need to know a few rules of this Jire place," Jire in Asari mythology is a hellish place. "First of all, and most importantly, as an Asari you will need to wear a pair of gloves that come past your elbow at all times, Master is very adamant about this rule, he has an unfounded fear that we will try to manipulate him with our touch. If we leave this room, we are to adhere to a strict dress code, no exception, and you are to never look the Master in the eyes, he will beat you severely for this. If you try to use your biotics, you will also be severely beaten, if not killed, but I suspect Master will be arranging a biotic dampener for you, especially if you are who you say you are."</p><p>"Unfortunately I am," Rhea replies with a sigh, "But may I ask, you are a grade 5 Ardat, don't you need to meld?"</p><p>Aesop reluctantly blinks her eyes, "Master sees to my needs, meaning you are safe in my presence if that is your fear. Now please, you must put these gloves on for your own well being." Aesop reaches into a nearby wardrobe and takes some gloves out to hand to Rhea. Rhea looks down at the plain white gloves for a few moments before reluctantly pulling the gloves on and up past her elbow.</p><p>"You will get used to them," Aesop says with some sorrow in her voice, "But I must go on with the other rules, of which there are many." Rhea mentally prepares herself for the list, and by the end, she has no clue on how she will follow them all, never mind the unknown who can't speak a single communicable word.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Earth - UNSC</p><p>"Sir, UDP is waiting for your authorisation."</p><p>A Colonel looks to a vast array of screens that display dozens of different types of data and video feeds from an Ultron Defense Platform. Currently, the device is sat looking at the large construct that the aliens have used to enter the solar system. With a small nod, the Colonel says, "Let's do it."</p><p>The plan is simple, one of Ultrons platforms will perform a strafing pass, in an attempt to find a weakness in the structure, so that if push comes to shove, Ultron knows how to destroy the object.</p><p>"Sir, Ultron is caught in a gravity well."</p><p>"How?" A scientist says who is sat nearby, "We took the devices gravity well into consideration."</p><p>"Well I'm..." The people in the room go silent as the structure lashes out with what seems to be an arc of electricity, and before anyone can react Ultron's defence platform is going on a journey through something that will have scientists scratching their head for years to come</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Problems</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Problems are to be solved.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The President thanks a waiter for bringing him a large tray containing a jug of coffee, milk and sugar as he sits down in a chair in front of a large wooden table that he is about to conduct an important meeting over. While many would expect the President would want the coffee pre-made, to an exact standard, he instead prefers to make it himself, deciding how much milk, and how much sugar to add depending on his mood - it is a little thing that the President thinks will help to keep him grounded.</p><p>"Mr President," An aid calls to him once he has made himself a cup of coffee, "When you are ready."</p><p>The President nods after a sip of his brew, and in a few seconds 6 holographic figures soon join him around his large wooden table, each figure pays the correct compliments before the President makes his intention for this meeting clear. "I do not have long, so let's make this quick."</p><p>The six figures around the table represent a different branch of the government, each of whom he wants a debrief from. The first to reply is the man in charge of the UNSC - humanities space assets. "Currently, all available ships we have are now in mission." This means that the ships are no longer docked, and are ready for a fight if it comes to it. "Most of our assets are surrounding the fleet above Earth, with the most notable asset being the Planetary Assault Craft (PAC) Everest, helmed by Admiral Hackett. PAC Hope and Carrier Newtown should be in orbit in the next 18 hours. We are planning on bringing a few mothballed ships online in the next few days, including the Dreadnought Jormungand, and we have recalled ex-servicemen to help operate them. Current recruitment efforts are also providing a strong source of manpower, freeing suitably qualified and experienced personnel from harbour duties and other related duties to man ships. Our largest concern at the moment is the dockyards are beginning to run out of materials, with our latest estimates stipulating all docks will run out of materials completely by Tuesday next week. If we want to continue production of Ultron Defence Platforms, or other space assets, we need to restart our material deliveries from Jupiter or find a source local to Earth."</p><p>Currently, all non-military spacecraft are banned from transitting space, this is to help the military see any alien craft, and to create a battlespace that is free from civilians, but it is a costly endeavour. The President nods a few times before saying, "Would any have of you have objections if we allow the deliveries of critical supplies?" With no overly concerning issues raised, the President moves to the next man in the room, "How are our armies looking?"</p><p>"Stretched thin," The man in charge replies, "But like the UNSC we are increasing our manpower by the day; currently our recruitment services are being inundated with people signing up to serve, the people who pushed out the latest recruitment adverts really need recognition for their efforts. In order to combat this, I am pushing proposals for new phase 1 training establishments, and an increase in civil servants to help process the new recruits."</p><p>The President looks over some documents that have landed onto his data-pad, which contain plans for new phase 1 establishments, before nodding, "You have the green light." The President didn't even check to see how much this would cost. "Anything else?"</p><p>The man nods, "We are also now in full control of the police forces, which are receiving training on what to do should the worst come true."</p><p>"Excellent," The President replies, "The armed forces are going to need all the help they can get. Cerberus? How are you progressing?"</p><p>A Woman leans slightly further forward in her chair before replying, "Pyso ops are currently working well, we are seeing large increases in nationalism which are helping recruitment efforts." Looking to another person in the room who is in charge of the civilian response, the woman then continues, "We could increase the effectiveness of our ops if you could bring the world cup to the left. We could use the sports TV broadcasting to push our messages."</p><p>The man Cerberus talks to nods before replying to her, "We have been considering bringing the event forward, it would help people focus on something else."</p><p>The President taps his fingers on the desk a few times before saying, "If I remember correctly, the cup is not supposed to start for another month or two; people will not be able to get tickets, transport, accommodation and so on. Are you sure this would be a good idea?"</p><p>Once more it is Cerberus who replies, "The beauty about the sport is there are enough people who could and will make the dedication to travel for the new dates, and the change in dates can easily be explained so that the event misses the regions hot summer."</p><p>The President frowns a little, he does not like the idea, "Convincing the organisation to change will also be..."</p><p>"Easy," Cerberus says, "They are as corrupt as you can get, all they think about is money money money. Assure them a temporary tax relief, and they will be eating from your hand."</p><p>The President blows out a deep breath before nodding, "Then let's do it, your psyops are important enough to rearrange the tournament. Anything else?"</p><p>"Yes. We have concerning news from our investigation of the alien structure. We sent an unmanned drone to investigate it further, and it is now located here." The woman associated with Cerberus pushes a picture of the galaxy to the Presidents data-pad. "The platform arrived at another one of these constructs, which is identical to the one orbiting Pluto. We believe the UDP was captured in some sort of massless tunnel between these constructs and propelled at extreme speeds."</p><p>The President looks down to his data-pad which now displays a map of the galaxy. Finding Earth, the President notices a few things; first of all he can see the 3 failed attempts to colonies solar systems a few light-years from Sol, which resulted in way too many dead or missing to try again without advances in FTL technology, and the current lone successful attempt at extra-solar colonisation. He can see the immediate surrounding systems that are being explored by Cube Sats, and the research stations in dark space between solar systems. It takes the man a few seconds to find the lone Defence Platform. "Is this accurate?" The Defence Platform is nearly two thousand light-years away.</p><p>"We double and triple checked. The platform is 1,987 Light Years away. It took a total of three hours to get there."</p><p>The President places the data-pad down on the table in front of him, before asking, "How powerful are these beings to have created a means of travel so fast?"</p><p>"We do not believe these... massless relays are the aliens own construct. Their design is very alien to the limited sample of alien vessels we have seen, and from Ultron's readings, far older. Maybe hundreds of millions of years old."</p><p>The President frowns at the supposed age before saying, "Have that double checked, I find it hard to believe, but moving on what concerns me the most is the aliens can obviously enter our system from extreme distances using these constructs. Can we destroy it? End their means of travel into our system?"</p><p>The UNSC representative replies to this question, "We have already considered this. It is manipulating unfathomable amounts of energy to do what it does, if we destroy it, we could release that energy into our solar system. We do not know if even with our planetary defences if we could survive that amount of energy. If we wanted to destroy this thing, I would advise doing it at the other side, where ever it connects to."</p><p>"No," The Cerberus representative adds, "The devices are evidently interlinked, destroying either one could have repercussions on the other. We do not understand them enough to tamper with them - yet."</p><p>"Could we move it out of Sol then?"</p><p>"We are dealing with constructs far beyond our understanding," Cerberus responds, "The best I could advise is we place a guard on the far side to buy us three hours warning notice before any war fleet could enter our home system."</p><p>"We could send some additional Ultron Platforms," UNSC says, "We're pushing 50 of them out every 2 hours, and we don't have the ships to spare otherwise."</p><p>"Send fifty." The President decides, knowing that the 50 could deal some serious damage if used correctly, "But I don't want them discovered unless they absolutely need to make their presence known."</p><p>"I'll see to it," The man in charge of UNSC says.</p><p>The President turns back to Cerberus, "Anything else to report? How is our Ava doing?"</p><p>The woman quickly reads a few notes from a notepad before responding, "We have some interesting discoveries. First of all two new species," The woman pushes two photos to the Presidents data-pad, "One we are unofficially calling 'Four Eyes', and the other as simply 'Suits'. They have been discovered by Ava on a world 1 and a half days travel from Earth, at the aliens velocity. We are not entirely sure where this world is, however. From observing what Ava has been experiencing, we are almost certain she has been brought to a society that enslaves others." Once more some photos taken from Ava's vision appear on the Presidents data-pad. "I've highlighted a few interesting features which makes us believe this is the case."</p><p>The President looks over the data and grimly nods, "So, on our door step there is a species willing to enslave others." Bringing a hand to his forehead, the President rubs his skin in a soothing motion before saying, "And they now know where we are. I don't think we need to revisit the history books to know what could come next if they are more advanced." The President blows out a sigh before saying, "This information does not leave this room until we have compiled a robust plan on how to deal with this. Is there anything else from our robotic friend?"</p><p>"Nothing important enough for this meeting."</p><p>The President nods before refilling his coffee cup and directing his attention to another man, "How is the Civilian response?"</p><p>"We are mass stocking food, water, energy reserves and medicine as we speak and evacuation plans are being taught on local news channels. A lot of locations are struggling though, people are raiding stores for their own supplies, and frankly, a large percentage of the population do not believe we can contain this situation resulting with law enforcement being bogged down against people doing stupid things in the name of defending their families against potential invasions. The mass drive for military recruitment is not helping the situation, it is making a lot think the government is scared."</p><p>"Then they are not wrong," The President replies grimly, "Is there anything we can do to help? How are the latest videos going down?"</p><p>"The images of the aliens playing with the puppies and monkeys are helping," Admits the man in charge of the civilian response, "The video of the blue Alien and the monkey hanging off her is currently one of the most viewed videos going, with a lot of positive upvotes, we need more like it. It shows they are a little like us and I don't see any harm of showing some more of that on the TV. I also wonder if we can get them to answer questions from the public, get them to tell us where they are from, why they are here, and what on earth they are doing with a fleet above our home planet."</p><p>The UNSC representitve speaks up at this, "It has been a long time since we had a good parade, could show off our troops and let the people know they are well equipped, have the latest heavy armour front and centre. I imagine it would help with recruitment too."</p><p>Both the man in charge of the army and the civilian response shake their heads at the idea, but its the Army representative that speaks, "No, as much as I would love to have our heavy armour rumble down a city centre with waving flags like from times of old, we can't spare the manpower at the moment."</p><p>The man in charge of the civilian response nods in agreement before adding, "I also do not think this would go down well, the last time tanks were seen in a city on Earth was during the War."</p><p>The President places his coffee mug down before nodding and saying, "I concur, I will not have tanks on our streets. I do like the idea of having the public ask the aliens questions, however. Get me videos of people asking questions, and we will sit some of the aliens down and play the questions for them. Also, get them to ask about slavery, and see if we can direct questions relating to this newfound species."</p><p>"I've already done it, Mr President. Had some kids from a local school record questions for the aliens. Had them ask in Prothean too. I'm sending the questions to your data-pad now. I will need an hour or so to get some new questions relating to the new developments, however"</p><p>"Good, good, get them to me as soon as you can." The President says, wanting to get the aliens to answer the questions as soon as possible. "Economics, any advances or developments in your department?"</p><p>The woman in charge shakes her head, "The universal credit is continuing to drop, we are now anticipating it to stabilise at 1.6 Kilo Joules."</p><p>The President grimaces, with the credit dropping so low, vulnerable communities will need aid.</p><p>"Have we got anything in the works to help people out who are hit the hardest by this?"</p><p>"Yes," The advisor immediately responds.</p><p>"Good, I want the first draft of our response on my desk by Monday morning."</p><p>"I will make it so."</p><p>The President then turns to the last man in the room who has yet to say a word, "Energy sector, how are we looking?"</p><p>A man who looks far older than the rest leans forward in his chair, the President imagines if he listens hard enough, he would hear the squeak in the old man's bones. "Our energy reserves are being finely managed, but the production of Ultron Defence Platforms is proving to drain the reserves quicker than anticipated. We will need to start limiting electronic applications if we can't reinitialise energy deliveries from our mines around the sun."</p><p>The President sighs and nods, "Any objections if we reinitialise deliveries?"</p><p>The UNSC advisor speaks in response, "Yes, from a military perspective, those energy deliveries are highly volatile and have already been identified as vulnerabilities, if one was hit in combat it could do some serious damage. I would far rather not be able to use my sonar shower and automated toilet cleaner than have to provide a heavy escort to the deliveries, never mind deal with the consequences of a detonated energy delivery."</p><p>"I'm convinced," The President replies before turning his attention back to the old man, "Start thinking of implementing restrictions on the use of energy, and have a plan of action on my desk in two days time."</p><p>"If you do not mind, Mr President, I am not convinced." The person in control of the civilian response interrupts, "Rationing energy should be a last resort, it is a commodity that many will not take kindly to having restricted."</p><p>"And it will be a last resort," The President retorts, "But we need to be prepared."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Back at the hotel, Benezzia and Tevos blink to one another, both agreeing with their next set of actions. Leaving the holo-suite the duo move through the building till they find someone who can help them - the green mane soldier. Approaching the soldier who is currently doing some sort of exercise in the hotels' gym Benezzia clears her throat before saying, "Can you help?"</p><p>The soldier puts down a heavy-looking slab of metal before standing from her position. "With?" The soldier asks.</p><p>"I show," Benezzia replies before moving with Tevos to the holo-suite, there the T'soni gestures to a control panel, "Yesterday, people sparring. We want a try."</p><p>The Human narrows its eyes before approaching the control panel and tapping a few buttons, which results in a man in bronze armour and a helmet with red feathers appearing from thin air. "This is a Spartan." The green-haired human tells Benezzia, "Famous warrior, very dangerous."</p><p>Benezzia quickly turns to Tevos and translates, before asking, "Shall we?"</p><p>With a blink of confirmation, Benezzia approaches the warrior, who has now dug his spear into the sandy floor, allowing it to stand erect on its own, his shield has also been disbanded. Benezzia eyes the warrior in his eyes for a moment before bowing her head in its direction, a sign of respect. She then takes a moment to take a defensive posture. "How do we start?" She asks.</p><p>The human says something in a foreign language, and without a second pause the holographic figure is on top of Benezzia, laying into her with incredible strength and ferocity - it is only by the Asari's extraordinary experience that she does not immediately sub come to the entity. The inevitable eventually happens, however, and the Spartan kicks her to the floor, its strength being able to overcome Benezzia's skill. The computer-generated figure quickly returns to a neutral position, but its eyes constantly follow Benezzia as she stands back up. Accepting defeat the Asari allows the Councillor into the ring and stands back, only to witness something similar happen a short time later.</p><p>With Tevos defeated Benezzia turns to the human, "Wish to try?"</p><p>The human raises a brow before stepping into the sandy ring, and as soon as the battle commences the green haired human slams into the Spartan, where her inhuman strength and speed gifted to her through her augmentation process allows her to pick the man up like a rag doll and slam him into the ground - Benezzia has no doubts this human would have torn the Spartan into shreds had she not stood up afterwards instead.</p><p>This sequence of events continues multiple times, till an aid of the President comes in, with a proposal for Benezzia.</p><p>/.../</p><p>1 hour later</p><p>Tevos perks up when Benezzia re-enters her room, and shows a curious raised brow when the Asari collapses into a chair, "I hope it was not that bad." Tevos quips as she turns the human entertainment device off that she had been watching.</p><p>"No," Benezzia replies, "But there were some interesting questions that required a lot of thought."</p><p>"Do expand," Tevos says, having now fully turned her body to fully face the Asari Matriarch.</p><p>"They started easy," Benezzia admits, "Where are we from in the Milkyway galaxy - pointed out on a map, what is our species name, how many intelligent space capable species are there, those types of questions. Then they got probing, wanting to know what type of government we have, what do we think of the other species, so what did I think of the Turians and Salarians, what did the Turians think of the Salarians and Asari."</p><p>"Smart." Tevos interrupts, knowing that getting others to express their thoughts on yourself would more often than not get more honest responses, "What was the general response to that one?"</p><p>"For the Salarians I said the studious and curious, the Turians were inevitably the peacekeepers. The Salarians asked me to tell them that they viewed the Asari as communal, and the Turians as uncalculated risk-takers - I removed the uncalculated in my translation - and the Turians labelled ourselves as thorough, and the Salarians as calculating."</p><p>"Not the most appealing of descriptions," Tevos says as she blows out a sigh, "But not too bad. Anything else?"</p><p>"Yes," Benezzia replies, "They asked a few seemingly aimed questions, not something children would think of."</p><p>"Wait," Tevos stops Benezzia, "Children?"</p><p>"Yes, the Humans used children to ask the questions."</p><p>Tevos frowns at this development, using children in such a way could be seen as deceitful in Asari space - you would never use children to ask political or important questions. "Hmm, what were they asking?"</p><p>"They wanted to know what type of government we operated, if the Mass Relay in their space was our own creation, what is the current state of galactic affairs, and what are our thoughts on slavery."</p><p>Tevos grimaces at the last part, "Please don't tell me we have another advocate of slavery,"</p><p>"No," Benezzia says, "They seemed a little repulsed by the idea."</p><p>"Then they will not get along with the Batarians, which is a little concerning when we think of how close the nearest Batarian colony is," Tevos says, "But it is an unusual question to ask."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Meanwhile</p><p>Urdnot Wrex looks in the eyes of the little creature that is trapped between his fingers, its efforts to break free from his fingers will prove futile, and its attempts to make him feel guilty with its droopy eyes staring into his soul will also have no effect - its fate was sealed the moment he handed over the credits to the merchant.</p><p>Hearing more than a few chairs screech along the floor as their occupants rush to leave them, followed by a quiet commotion as people begin to leave the room Wrex begins to wonder who has entered the fast food restaurant, maybe it is the blood pack, or possibly that new Turian group that has been terrorising the lower levels of Omega recently. Either way, he does not care for them too much, not many are stupid enough to get in the bad books of a Krogan with obviously modern armour, a claymore shotgun strapped to their leg and more than a few scars on their muzzle.</p><p>Hearing the click of some heels approach Urdnot Wrex gains a small grin on his face, it has been too long since he and Alena T'Vos crossed paths. Wrex does not turn to face her; instead, he waits for the Asari to come into his line of vision - he will not grant her the satisfaction of having himself turning around to face her.</p><p>When she is stood in front of him and in his line of sight she says "Urdnot Wrex," With a cold voice; a voice which would typically have most others worried, but Wrex is not most others.</p><p>Placing the squirming animal between his fingers down on the table he is sat at, Wrex then sits back on his chair and adjusts his armour plates slightly before saying, "Long time no see, Alena. I hope you weren't dragged down to this stench of a restaurant for little me." The Krogan has a little chuckle after saying this, knowing it will grind on the Asari's gears.</p><p>Alena does not seem to be in a playful mood as she cuts straight to business, "Fifteen thousand credits if you leave immediately."</p><p>Wrex begins to laugh before bringing his hand down and capturing the escaping creature by its tail. "I know you Alena, better than you would like to admit. If your offering 15 thousand, the jobs worth 25, maybe 30. Who else is on your payroll?"</p><p>"Vasair, Bray, and myself."</p><p>Wrex tilts his head slightly and squints at the Asari before saying, "35 then." The fact Alena, or is it Aria now? Didn't dispute the price means that the Asari is willing to pay.</p><p>"Your lucky your game is as good as your talk. We leave now." As Alena turns to leave the restaurant Wrex stands, bites the head off the small creature, spits it onto the floor and then eats the body; had he consumed the head, he would be hallucinating vividly for the next hour, two at the worst. Most likely, the local vermin would eat the head, and Wrex chuckles a little at the idea of a pyjak hallucinating for the next year, having just eaten something strong enough to make a Krogan hallucinate.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. The Reinforcements</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ship Master Camaxtli sits on the edge of his chair, his sensor expert warned him a short time ago that the Council Armada has entered the system and are now on an approach vector, which is something he has not been looking forward to. Cmaxtli knows that his vessel can do little to stop the council fleet, the fleet is simply far too big, and carrying far too much firepower. To even challenge the imposing fleet in numbers, the Hegemony would need to send the majority of their Primary, Secondary and Third fleet, which would leave only the Fourth and Fifth fleets to protect Batarian space. To challenge the firepower of the fleet, the Hegemony would need to send everything it had, and more.</p><p>Camaxtli's orders are simple, he is to find out the intent of the Citadel Fleet by placing his ship in front of it before the Citadel Armada can proceed any deeper into Batarian space. He is to warn them that proceeding any further would be viewed as 'Citadel Aggression' against the Hegemony, resulting in the immediate cessation of all critical resources from Batarian space, and patrol vessels pulled from the Traverse border.</p><p>Personally, Camaxtli does not think this is stern enough, the Citadel have sent not only the largest assembled fleet seen in his lifetime but a fleet under the command of the war criminal Careddeus Fanus into their space. Camaxtli scoffs at the idea of the Turians allowing Balak the Defender to enter Turian sovereign space with a fleet, it will never be allowed to happen. Actually, if it did happen, the Turians would undoubtedly send a fleet to intercept and destroy it, so why is this invasion of Batarian rights happening right now?</p><p>Hearing his comms specialist inhale a deep breath Camaxtli turns to face him, knowing the specialist has a tick which results in him taking a deep breath before speaking. "We are in range for light comms."</p><p>Camaxtli stands from his chair and takes a moment before giving the gesture to hail the fleet, and shortly a Turian appears on the viewscreen; the Turian is none other than the repulsive Primarch's Chosen. "Batarian vessel," The Turian states almost immediately, beating the Batarian to speak, as he continues to speak the Turian tilts his head to the right. The act of tipping one's head to the right would not be significant if it is not for the fact that in Batarian culture, tilting your head to the right when speaking to someone indicates you think you are of a higher class then them; Camaxtli knows that the Primarchs chosen will know this fact. "You are in the way of my fleet." The tilting of the head is highly insulting.</p><p>Camaxtli does not let the Turian see that its insult has affected him - he is sure this conversation will be broadcasted into Batarian space, so he needs to look impartial, he needs to make the Turian look like the aggressor. "You're in Batarian space." He simply replies after a moment to think, "You are trespassing against the Hegemony and his people." Unlike the Turians and the Asari, to Batarians a state and nation are referred to as the male gender.</p><p>The Turian is still tilting his head to the right, "We are acting on Council Order UN6401. Your Hegemony is an Associated Member of the Council, meaning by Council Law, your Hegemony is required to allow us safe passage to our destination."</p><p>"You bring an Armada with some of the heaviest and most powerful ships in known existence. The Hegemony would be stark raving mad to allow such a transgression without reason, a one you are yet to provide outside of some elusive Citadel edict we are yet to receive. Continuing down this path will have consequences, resources..."</p><p>The Turian is in no mood for Camixtli's response, cutting him off to say, "Madder yet is to attempt to veer this fleet. Carradeus out." The video feed is terminated on the Turian's side, leaving Camaxtli to his own thoughts. Deciding to stay put in his position, as ordered, he waits for the fleet to respond.</p><p>"Enemy fleet moving around our position." The sensor expert says, "They show no attempt to slow or accelerate." A common Turian tactic before using their main spinal guns is to pump considerable amounts of energy into their mass effect core, reducing their mass, this then allows them to accelerate to a speed which is unsustainable for anything longer than a few seconds. The burst of speed gained through reducing their mass ultimately results in the guns delivering a payload with considerably more velocity, reducing the chances of it being dodged.</p><p>"Understood," Camixtli responds, "All hands brace for the gravity wake." When a ship is powered by element zero it creates a large gravity wake behind it, and a ship caught in this wake can be pulled and pushed around as the gravity waves pass through the vessel. To be caught in the wake of a fleet just shy of 200 vessels strong is sure to throw Camixtli's small scout vessel around like it is a feather caught in the winds of a hurricane.</p><p>/.../</p><p>The Turian Councillor looks at himself in the mirror as a second Turian moves around him, inspecting the Councillor from numerous different angles to see what he has to work with, "So then, what will it be today?" Asks the second Turian.</p><p>The Councillor brings a hand up and touches his left mandible, his fingers focussing on the pointy end, "I would be correct in thinking the latest fashion is for a Coretta point and a Corvena edge, correct?"</p><p>The second turian tuts a few times before saying, "Not any longer I'm afraid, the latest is for a Corvena edge, featuring a Nivvena point while having a slight grove filed along the outer edge. I could show you if you would like?"</p><p>"Yes, please do." The Councillor asks, knowing from past experience that his groomer is typically on point with his suggestions.</p><p>With a few button presses, the mirror that Councillor Sparatus is looking into augments his image, displaying what the Councillor would look like with the suggested cut to his mandibles. The Councillor rotates his head in a few different directions, to see what he would look like from a few different angles before saying, "Yes, I like this. Tone down the tribal colours, however, I need enough to show my tribe, and type of military service served, but not enough to push it into people's faces."</p><p>"As you command," The Turian File Master replies as he reaches for a small file to begin his work. To a Turian, a well decorated, and well-groomed set of mandibles is a sign of not only wealth but of good health; meaning the Councillor is a regular customer of this File Master. A good mandible should always have a point on it capable of puncturing the skin, and a small edge which could tear meat from a Kohaka if needed, but the latest fashion tendencies dictates the design of these features - which regularly changes. The Turian Councillor can remember an old fashion which had almost a third of the mandible filed down so that the edge was sharp, thankfully, that fashion does not seem to be ready for a return any time soon.</p><p>As the File Master begins his work, the two engage in occasional chit chat, the conversations range from how busy work has been, to family life, and what is planned for that evening's meal. In a lull between conversation as the Turian File Master focusses heavily on his work, the Turian councillor looks into the mirror in front of him and focuses on where an entertainment device behind him is displaying some news channel. From the colours displayed and the logo at the top right of the screen, he knows the channel is a Volus one, which does not entirely surprise the Councillor. Sparatus knows most Turians outside of Turian space prefer Volus news channels, they tend to be the most impartial of all the known species.</p><p>"I heard it was us Turians that rescued the Asari Councillor, again," The File Master says as he steps back to look at the Councillors mandible he is working on, "At times, I don't know what the others would do without us."</p><p>"Yes, we did," Sparatus replies, "But we all have our place in the galaxy, it just so happens we carry the claws." It is a political answer, and both the File Master and the Councillor know it, but they also know it has a surprising amount of truth to it. Both Turians know that the Hierarchy would be lost without Asari technology and expertise, or the Salarian intelligence reports.</p><p>The two go back into a comfortable silence until the Councillor stands abruptly from his chair and approaches the entertainment device he has been watching in the mirror's reflection. Across the bottom of the screen is a banner which says "BREAKING NEWS - FIRST CONTACT" and above the banner plays a video of a Turian exchanging salutes with an unidentified alien - a one Sparatus knows to be called 'Human'. "Faex." The Councillor says, referencing a volcano on Palavern, its meaning to Turians is equivalent to the English word for excrement. "Cassia," The Councillor then says, calling to the File Master, "I need you to finish in quick time."</p><p>"Yes," The File Master initially replies, who is now also watching the entertainment device with great interest. "As you command. I can imagine you will have a lot of work on your plate because of this."</p><p>"Hmm," Sparatus muses as he takes to sitting in the File Masters chair, "You have no idea."</p><p>Half an hour later the file masters work is done and Sparatus is sat with the two other representatives of the Citadel Council. "So," Sparatus begins, getting straight down to business, "Who talked?"</p><p>"A Salarian known as Animalia, the STG are already ensuring..."</p><p>The Asari representative cuts the Salarian Councilor off, "Nothing. We act against them, and there will be a public outcry because he has leaked reports which stipulate our fears over the Humans. Primarily their ship armour, their stealth vessels and the potential capability of the Human weaponry. People are wanting to know why we haven't told them already considering the threat that this species pose to ourselves, and they will be outraged beyond calming if we silence this man."</p><p>"We have created ourselves a faex sandwich, and now we're eating it," Muses Sparatus, referencing to the fact they have withheld the information from the public. "Do we know what else the leak has had access to? What else they can reveal to the press?"</p><p>"They have had their hands on every report sent by Quirinus from the moment we found out," Valern admits, "The STG are trying to figure out exactly what else they are yet to leak."</p><p>"Right... Right." Sparatus pulls a hand down over his face before then asking, "So, the secret is out of the bag. What do we tell them?" Them obviously refers to the civilians of the galaxy.</p><p>"Well, what do we know?" Asks Irissa, "We know one of their worlds whereabouts, their species name, and the fact that they are the ones who rescued the Avians crew, not the QRF fleet. We also know some other little tidbits that have us worried about their military capabilities. What we should or could reveal, we actually have very little. We do not know how long they have been space capable, we do not know their population numbers, their homeworld, their character traits or political mindset."</p><p>Sparatus taps the table before saying, "We can not release their known whereabouts yet, the last thing we need is for the Batarians to become a problem."</p><p>"We doubt the Batarians will be a problem," Valern says, speaking up for the first time in a small while, "Studying past experiences would tell us they will sit back and learn new species before they begin territorial aggression."</p><p>"All due respect, Valern," Sparatus replies, "The discovered Human territory is firmly surrounded by Batarian space. Now, as I'm sure you know, Batarians are historically aggressive when dealing with trespassers or people who stray close to their turf, to the point they enslaved a Turian Colony ship which had strayed into space the Batarians arguably did not own. This was an event my predecessor almost green-lighted an invasion of Trebiea over if you remember correctly.."</p><p>"Yes." Irissa comments to this, "I remember we offered a great sum of resources to pacify the situation."</p><p>"Many Turians still call for a robust military response over it, compensated or not. My point is this, the Batarians will be problematic. If they can get a fleet there before our own arrives, then I dread to think what the result would be."</p><p>"Could they get a fleet there?" Asks Irissa.</p><p>Sparatus slowly blinks in the Asari's direction, "Yes, Salarian intelligence suggests the Batarians have cobbled a fleet together in response to the one under the command of the Primarchs Chosen, and now the news is out regarding the Humans, they know the fleet is for the Humans. My Military advisors believe the Batarians may head straight for the Human world in efforts to get concessions out of ourselves. We do not think they will be dense enough to try anything with the newcomers."</p><p>"If they did try something that really would be a thorn in the socks," Irissa responds, "Could we deter them, make the humans seem more dangerous than they are?"</p><p>"No," Sparatus dismisses, "That would be an awful idea. It would probably cause the Hegemony to send their fleet in the human direction just to protect itself."</p><p>"Not to mention," Valern adds, "It would also cause great concern among the public. We have already seen stocks take a dive from the leaks."</p><p>"Just how bad are the stocks doing?" Asks Sparatus, who has not yet had the chance to check on them since the news broke.</p><p>"Overall? Down 4%" Valern replies, "The volus think they will be able to stop the haemorrhaging by days end if no more leaks are announced."</p><p>"If being the keyword." Muses Sparatus, "Alright. But we need to address the situation, we still need to make an official comment over the Humans, either to acknowledge their existence or to deny it. I do not think we can deny their existence any longer, though."</p><p>"No," Irissa agrees, "We can not. I vote we release a statement confirming that Fleet Commander Quirinus is currently initiating contact with the species."</p><p>"I agree," Sparatus responds, "But we also must be ready with our answers. My people especially will want to know why we have sent the Primarchs Chosen on this mission, and with such a sizeable fleet."</p><p>"We can't claim it is a standard response to First Contact. We did not send such a powerful fleet for the Batarians, Volus or the Quarians on their respective first contacts." Valern notes.</p><p>"True, but none of them have warships made of relay metals, ring worlds, stealth war vessels or plasma weaponry." Sparatus says before pulling a hand down his face, "This is going to be a fun afternoon. If I get an assistant to bring a drink up do any of you want one brought up?"</p><p>/.../</p><p>Earth</p><p>Tevos looks herself over in a full-length mirror before blinking to herself, happy with her overall appearance. As it turns out, after Dinner, which was once more an extravagant affair with more types of food then Tevos had anticipated, the Humans had invited them to a 'cultural' event. From loose translations, Tevos understands the event will showcase different types of music from human culture, trick masters, and unique types of entertainment. After collecting the rest of her cohort, Tevos finds herself whisked away in some sort of sky car, only to start landing procedures around 20 minutes later; from the speed of the skycar Tevos must assume they are a fair distance from their accommodation. The city they are landing at Tevos notes to herself is far smaller than the city they flew over the day prior, nor does it have the spiralling skyscrapers, instead, this town appears old and is representative of an Asari city during the late industrial years. In the centre of this city and living on the top of a small rocky hill, there is a building that looks as old as the mountains, it is made from what looks like rudimentary materials and is surrounded by a wall which looks equally as old. It occurs to Tevos that this building must have been a fortress at some time that the humans for some reason never tore down. In fact, it would appear to Tevos like the Humans have illuminated the Fortress of a building, lighting it up nicely in the night sky, glorifying it.</p><p>The skycar comes to land in a quiet courtyard not too far away from the city centre, and outside the car Tevos can see a few Humans standing around, no doubt waiting for her cohorts arrival. Before dismounting from the car, Tevos notices a few of the human soldiers checking what must be concealed communication devices, before nodding to one another and then opening the doors to the skycar. The President is the first to leave after the soldiers, followed by Benezzia, and then everyone else dismounts in a disorganised manner. There are a few words exchanged between Benezzia, the President and the new humans before Tevos finds herself and her group led out of the courtyard and into the city's streets. The street itself is dead, no one being around, but this does not bother Tevos too much. It allows her to see the old buildings of this city in all their glory, and for her to catch a glimpse at what type of shops are available, and thankfully the Human shops don't appear to be too different from Asari shops. There are clothes shops, watch shops, jewellery shops, food shops and one or two others that Tevos is not too sure of, but one type of shop which does surprise her is a one which appears to sell skin ink, so far only Asari are known to decorate their skin with ink.</p><p>Turning off the street to move down a quiet side street Tevos comes to the conclusion they are making their way to the imposing Fortress at the top of the hill. As they get closer to the Fortress, they leave the side street and enter some wider streets that once more are lined with shops all the way down them. Unlike the prior streets, the new streets are different from the last because these streets are populated with humans, many of whom are now staring at herself and her team. Being allowed to walk a street populated with civilian humans on so close to first contact is also a good indicator to Tevos, it means that the Human leaders trust their people enough to not just attack her group. What she does not yet fully realise is the Augment soldiers with her are armed and enough of a deterrent for anyone to try something.</p><p>The group walk along a few more streets till they start walking up the hill towards the Fortress, and as they walk more and more among the local population, Tevos comes to notice a few things. Humans are really diverse, they have many different hair colours and styles, they come in many different sizes and shapes. Their skin is sometimes decorated with tattoos like her own, and sometimes their skin is of a completely different colour. Some of the humans walk alone with their dogs, in fact more than Tevos would have anticipated which tells her the animals are more relevant to the humans than expected, and others walk in large social groups. The conclusion to be made is simple, Humans are going to be a diverse and complex species to fully understand, meaning it will be a considerable amount of time before the Council will be able to fully understand the reasons why a human government acts how it does.</p><p>Getting near the top of the hill the Councillor can see some stands have been erected in front of the Fortress's entrance, with the stands being filled with maybe a thousand or so Humans. Tevos can't help but remark to Benezzia that she hopes they themselves are not what the humans have come to see. Tevos finds herself being taken behind the stands and to the Fortress, where they are then taken up onto its walls through what must be ancient corridors built into the Fortress and then on to the top of the gatehouse. From this position on top of the gatehouse, Tevos can look into what the stands in front of the Fortress have been erected around; It quickly comes clear the stands are built around an illuminated performance area.</p><p>As they take their position, a waiter offers everyone in the group a selection of drinks, and a voice can be heard broadcasting from a speaker to announce something to the audience, which is then quickly translated to Benezzia.</p><p>"It turns out," Benezzia then says to Tevos, "This is a cultural event from this part of the world, and has happened every year for more than a thousand years. There will be numerous different acts."</p><p>The first act caught the group off guard as some drummers within the Fortress itself started to beat some drums, only for some people in red coats carry a wide variety of musical instruments to enter the performing area seconds later from the gatehouse of the Fortress. After the act was complete, the Human audience did something unexpected, with nearly everyone of them slapping their hands together, creating a commotion of harsh slapping sounds. Tevos would come to see this after every act, and quickly realises it is how the humans show applause. It is an odd mechanism to show appreciation, but Tevos can see how it works, it's loud and audible. It would not work for the Asari though, the act of 'clapping' is a little too 'out there'.</p><p>Over the course of the evening, Tevos would come to see many different types of entertainment, some acts involved humans dancing, others performing different types of music. Still, most importantly, there was something which entertained everyone attending. One act which grabbed the Turians attention involved a race between two teams dragging ancient and heavy looking cannons over various obstacles, Tevos notes that the Turians also liked how the Humans started the race by firing a mini cannon. Something which grabbed the Salarians attention was a 'magic' show, she could hear the Salarians discussing long after the act how the entertainer had done what he did. How did the man cut the woman in half, and how did he do that thing with the balls and string? Tevos may never know, but she does know the act held her attention all the way through. For her own people, the Asari, in general, were most captivated by the fire dancing, it certainly added an extra flair to simple body movements.</p><p>As the show went on, it was explained to Tevos from Benezzia that the Humans consider this show to be a platform to show off culture, and while all the performers may arrive as strangers to one another, from many different parts of Human space, they will all leave as friends. It is a nice sentiment, Tevos thinks, already conceiving of a way she could use this event in the future to showcase off some Citadel culture to the Humans.</p><p>The event was brought to its conclusion with all the performers of the evening coming into the performing area to sing some sort of song, before some fireworks concluded the night with a final bang. Checking the time Tevos notes it has been 3 hours since the event started, meaning by now, she is ready for some sleep. Thankfully, the Humans must also think the same as they quickly bring a sky car in for them to return to their accommodation.</p><p>As Tevos sits in the sky car on the way back, she turns from observing the planet below her and to Benezzia, "I've been thinking," She says. "We just witnessed many different types of talent, from physical to musical, but we did not see a single demonstration of biotics." Usually, this is something species that poses biotic capabilities like to demonstrate.</p><p>"Yes," Benezzia blinks back, "I have also been thinking about this. I believe that this species probably do not harness biotic power. From my scans, their food contains next to no element zero, and no other scan I've made over the last day have detected any traces of element zero. I think this solar system may be parched of the element." It is not common for a solar system to completely lack element zero, but it is not unheard of.</p><p>"Then maybe we should ask tomorrow." Tevos returns, "After some sleep."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Pesky Batarians</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Time to move on.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After a short morning run for some exercise, Shepard went for breakfast, only to find since it is a picturesque morning with blue skies, the hotel staff are serving food outside and in the hotels garden. Shepard does not mind this change in scenery for breakfast because she, like most other humans, enjoys the sun on her skin. The sun is something Shepard knows she does not get enough of as her service takes her off-world a lot of the time, resulting in the requirement for extra vitamin D in her food, among a few other additional supplements.</p><p>After ordering some breakfast from the polite hotel staff, Shepard looks down the garden to find two Asari sitting cross-legged in some grass, facing towards the local star that is slowly rising in the sky.</p><p>"They seem to be at peace, don't they?" A voice calls and Shepard turns her head to view the President, "Mind if I join you?" It is not like Shepard could say no if she wanted to, so with a nod from the Soldier, the President pulls a chair out and joins Shepard at her table.</p><p>The hotels waiters, unsurprisingly, are very quick to ask the President for his choice in food, and when left alone the President once more turns to Shepard, "I'm right in thinking your a type 2, correct?"</p><p>The marine nods, knowing the President is referring to what generation of Augment she is, "One of the rare few left, yes." While there are many augments in service, very few are of the rare type 2, mostly due to how much action the type 2's have been subject to.</p><p>"And your brother, John, he is a type...4?"</p><p>Shepard once more nods, "Yes, Space force don't need half of the type 2 augments, and I don't need half of the type 4 augments. Space and ground warfare are different arts requiring different artists."</p><p>The President takes to sitting on his chair at a funny angle so he can rest his hands on the backrest of his chair while facing Shepard, "Yes, one must imagine so."</p><p>Shepard, realising that the President is in a curious mood, puts her eating utensils down and turns to face him fully, "So, what would you like to know?" She asks, most people, even those who are opposed to Augments are curious about them.</p><p>"You type 2's," The President starts with, "Apparently your skeleton is replaced with metal and..." Shepard starts to smirk; she has heard of a lot of stories regarding her own generation of augments, most of it belongs in sci-fi books.</p><p>"A lot of that is a myth," Shepard responds with a wave of her hand in a dismissing motion, "But I'm sure you already know that. What you might not know is the story of us having metal bones rose after a battle with some Micky's on the space elevator above Mars. It started after a comrade had a wound which exposed his bone, which funnily enough had been replaced with titanium due to an earlier war injury. The medics at the time quickly spread the story we had steel skeletons. We let it spread because during that war, we needed the whole concept of us Augments being terrifying terminator like machines." The idea to let the story spread was that of a crusty old Colonel who was quite adept in psychological warfare, but his plan failed; instead of just being scared of Augments, people would often go to extreme lengths to terminate them. Augment casualties went through the roof as people would call in all sorts of heavy fire on Augment locations, no matter the cost of doing so.</p><p>"I keep forgetting how old you type 2's are to have fought that war," The President muses, "But you mentioned 'a lot of that', key words being 'a lot of', which must mean some of it is at least true."</p><p>"Some of it. When fresh out of the augmentation process we all had bones reinforced with graphene, muscles four times as dense as a standard human and a reaction times far beyond the norm, on top of a lot of other nasty things to help us survive in chemical and biological battlefields."</p><p>"I see," Reflects the President before greeting an Asari and two Turians who have decided to join them for breakfast. After the greeting are over the President turns back to Shepard. "The augmentation period must have been hard to allow for such adaptations."</p><p>Shepard shakes her head, "No, I was drugged up to the eyeballs for most of it, and what little I do remember, is very blurred, to the point I'm not sure if it is a fragment of imagination or not."</p><p>"Was the process worth it?" Asks the President.</p><p>Shepard does not shake her head, but nor does she nod it, "Don't ask a question you really do not..." Shepard stops speaking mid-sentence and frowns heavily as she looks down the hotels garden, "What in the name?" She asks no one in particular before rapidly making a move to stand up.</p><p>Turning his head, the President looks towards what has the Soldier alarmed, only to find the two Asari are consumed by what could possibly be described as a blue fire of some kind. While the President might describe the flames surrounding the Asari as fire, he knows from his observations that the 'flames' are not fire, they are something else entirely. The colour of the 'flames' is that of a dark blue, and the 'flames' behaviour does not conform with that of a natural fire. Instead of acting like a normal fire, the flames look like they are being controlled and manipulated to swirl around the Asari.</p><p>The lone Asari at the table grabs for Shepard's arm while making a calming gesture, and when Shepard turns to look back at the two on 'fire', she finds the 'fire' is no more, and the Asari are moving from their seated position.</p><p>/.../</p><p>After helping Benezzia onto her feet the two Matriarchs turn to walk up the grass, "The solider looks... uneasy." Benezzia says.</p><p>Tevos blinks out of habit, even though she knows Benezia will not see her eyelid movement, "She looks tense. If she could burn holes with her eyes, I believe we would be in trouble right now."</p><p>"Is that because she is unsure of our biotics and its nature, or because we used biotics in such a manner?" Ponders Benezzia, "In hindsight, they could see the use of biotics as aggression."</p><p>Tevos looks past the human warrior and to the President who is sat at the table while starring at themselves, "Well, the President looks puzzled. I'm going to go down the route of the Humans not knowing about biotics."</p><p>Getting to the table with the President Tevos and Benezzia are greeted by the man, and after an expression of 'good morning,' spoken in Standard Galactic by the Human leader, Benezzia and the President enter a conversation. As Benezzia speaks with the President Tevos turns to the others on the table, "Well?" She asks them.</p><p>It is a Turian who replies to Tevos, and from his face paintings, Tevos knows the man has served in the Turian navy, and is from a tribe on Palavern, "They are not familiar with it. The Soldier was on her feet the moment it noticed, and the President was looking on confused."</p><p>Tevos does not like the Soldiers reaction, "Did the Soldier look like it was going to be hostile?"</p><p>"Yeah, but if that was the Primarch sat there, and a Cabal saw something like that from an unknown alien species, you could bet the Cabal would react the same."</p><p>Tevos blinks, she knows that what she did was very risky, if the Humans reacted even slightly more hostile, then things would have turned south very quickly, but the Asari had faith. The Humans so far have gone to extreme lengths to make good relations, so she did not expect them to react with much hostility on impulse. "Yes, very true."</p><p>It is not long till Benezzia finishes speaking with the President and turns to Tevos, "Well, the President does not know about biotics, and neither does the Soldier. Both are very inquisitive."</p><p>"What type of questions are they asking?"</p><p>"They want to know why I was on fire." Benezzia half chuckles, "They honestly have no idea about it, most of their questions are child-like."</p><p>"So, they can build ring worlds, plasma weaponry, and stealth technology hundreds of years more advanced than anything we dreamed of, yet they are clueless about biotics." Tevos muses.</p><p>"Don't forget about fast elevators." The third Asari on the table chips in, resulting in Tevos rolling her eyes.</p><p>Benezzia blinks after a small chuckle, "Yes, so it would seem."</p><p>"So, that makes me wonder if they have harnessed element zero yet. These people could be stuck to this solar system."</p><p>"I'm not sure," Benezzia replies honestly, "But what is curious is the fact that the humans know the word 'biotics'. They have just never known what the Prothean word actually meant and have never been able to translate."</p><p>"Well," Tevos starts, "I am glad you have been able to provide a service. Have they asked for a demonstration at all?"</p><p>"No," Benezzia quickly replies, "So far, they only think we can surround our bodies with 'fire'. So, I believe a demonstration would be best left to a diplomatic party as this whole event has been themselves showing off. We do not want to steal their show, so to speak."</p><p>"Very true," Tevos concedes before changing the topic, "So, what is the next stop on their show."</p><p>The other Matriarch blinks before going back to chat with the President for a while, and once a fair bit of conversation has been exchanged, Benezzia comes back to Tevos. "We are to take an 'Elon' to the opposite side of the world, where we are then going to see some of the aquatic wildlife this planet has to offer, we will be on a boat for this bit."</p><p>Despite coming from a world with a surface that is 79% ocean, Tevos is not the most avid ocean goer, mostly because she is one of the rare few that suffers from sea-sickness. "Don't suppose you packed any sea-sickness tablet?" Tevos asks to which Benezzia simply raises a brow, asking if Tevos really asked that. "Thought not. Hopefully, the sea's are calm." Hopefully...</p><p>/.../</p><p>Two hours later</p><p>After finishing breakfast Tevos and her cohorts are guided into a sky car which takes them to an unusual looking building. Upon entering the building, the group go down a few flights of stairs till they come across a large open room. At either side of the room is a large hole which a tube comes out of.</p><p>"This system is called the Elonvator," Benezzia translates, "It will take us under this planet's crust, and deliver us to the opposite side of the world."</p><p>Tevos turns her head when a Salarian speaks, "How are they doing that? Extreme pressure makes it infeasible." Even Tevos knows that the pressure below the planet's crust would crush 99% of metal structures. Either the Humans are lying, or they have some serious material science that citadel wants into - not that the ringworld above their planet doesn't already have Tevos salivating at the idea of getting her hands on their material science.</p><p>I'm just translating," Benezzia replies, "And lack the terminology to get the scientific explanations for you."</p><p>When the next 'Elon car' arrives the group strap themselves in and within an impressively short amount of time they are arriving at their stop. Why they did not use a sky car Tevos is uncertain, but if she had to bet, she would say they were showing off the 'Elonvator'. Building such a structure below their planet's crust could not have been an easy feat - harder yet would be maintaining the structural integrity. What no one in the away team knows yet, is that it is this structure which pushed humanity into discovering the metal used for creating the relays.</p><p>At their stop, the away team are quickly whisked away and onto a skycar which takes them a short distance to a harbour. Getting onto a relatively small boat, about 50 meters long, the away team find themselves sat down in front of a screen, where the safari man from the day prior begins to explain a few different animals. Apparently, there will be an opportunity to swim with a few of the aquatic beings, and with a few other creatures, they dare not put a toe into the water.</p><p>The boat ride out from the harbour was slow, as are all boats, but eventually, the boat arrives at its first stop, where the Humans point out to a few sea creatures which are occasionally seen jumping out of the ocean. It is explained to the group that these are dolphins, which are one of the most intelligent sea creatures known after the blue whale and killer whale. The group of dolphins were quickly enticed to come to the boat when some human workers threw some fish overboard, allowing all onboard a closer look at the creatures. Surprisingly, they looked a lot like some sea predators from Thessia.</p><p>Moving on from the dolphins the group find themselves floating above some coral reefs, where they are offered to go snorkelling, and as the waters are calm Tevos finds only the Turians opt to stay on board the boat. After an hour or so swimming among countless different types of sea creatures to be found in the corals, Tevos returns to the boat to find that there is a certain tense atmosphere on the boat. Tevos can not help but think that in her time off the boat, something has gone ghastly wrong.</p><p>Looking around, Tevos notices that Benezia is sat waiting for her, the Matriarch must have left the water some time ago as she looks dry. "Is all in order?" Tevos finds herself asking with some concern.</p><p>Benezia's facial reaction instantly causes a frown of concern to cross Tevos's face. "What has happened?"</p><p>Benezia does not initially give a verbal response as she pulls up an image on her omni-tool. "Have a look." She tells Tevos.</p><p>The Asari councillor takes the omni-tool as she sits down next to Benezia, she no longer cares about the fact that she is dripping wet. Looking at the picture on the omni-tool Tevos quickly realises what has gone wrong, on the omni-tool there is a picture of 65 Batarian vessels in tight formation. "Are they in Human space?"</p><p>Thankfully Tevos sees a slight clench in Benezia's fists telling her that no, the vessels are not in human territory, "No, but interestingly, the Humans are the ones that alerted us to this. The fleet is sat at the opposite side of the Relay needed to enter this system."</p><p>The Councilor breathes out a deep breath through her nose before closing the image of the fleet, "How have the humans reacted?"</p><p>Benezia once more clenches her fists, "I do not believe they are reacting well. The President has mentioned he will be leaving shortly to make 'Preparations'. I can only assume he means to make ready for a potential conflict."</p><p>Tevos raises a hand to her forehead, trust the bane of the Galaxy to ruin this First Contact, "Please tell me you told them they will not dare to try anything against a Turian fleet."</p><p>"The Humans have no reason to believe that." Benezia tells Tevos, "All they see is 30 Turian war vessels in their system, and 65 more which looks like they are about to join us. If this was an Asari system or even a Turian system, battle preparations would be made."</p><p>"I can't even think about how we can move them on," Tevos sighs, "The space that Relay connects to is Batarian owned. The Council can not force them out without serious concessions. And more concerningly, what happens when the Council fleet arrives? The Humans see two fleets just waiting to enter their system? Turians would see that as a pre-emptive strike waiting to happen, as would the Matriarchs. I can already hear the Human war calls."</p><p>Seeing Corvinus approach her position Tevos looks to the Turian Captain, knowing Benezia will most likely have already consulted with him, "What are your thoughts?"</p><p>The Turian is straight out with his answer, "We need to leave this system in order to let things calm and try to move the Batarians on. If these people think anything like my own, then we are in increasingly dangerous waters."</p><p>/.../</p><p>2 hours later</p><p>The President takes a seat around a large circular table with his most senior military advisers, as he sits he says, "So, our friends have confirmed they are Batarians. Give me options."</p><p>One of the military advisors pushes a strategic military map to the President, displaying the location of assets in the region of interest, "We have 51 Ultron platforms on the far side of the Relay; they have not been detected yet."</p><p>"You're talking about a pre-emptive strike. "</p><p>"No." The man replies bluntly, "Because I would consider a first move is sending a Stealth vessel into our space." Shortly before the Batarian fleet was detected a Stealth Vessel was discovered entering Human space by the Ultron Platforms at the far side of the relay. This stealth vessel has many of the military advisors concerned as many see it as a reccy for an invasion.</p><p>"What are we doing about the Stealth vessel?"</p><p>A man representing the Martian navy speaks up, "We have one of our own stealth vessels shadowing it. We have some Micky's ready to force entry on a moments notice." Micky's are slang Martian Marines.</p><p>"Do we know if the vessel belongs to the Batarians?"</p><p>The man gives an uneasy look, "We are not 100%, but it arrives just before them, which tells me its a Batarian reccy vessel, then to further the point we have discovered one shadowing the Batarian fleet."</p><p>The President sighs, "What is the one in our system doing at the moment?"</p><p>"Performing some data gathering on Jupiter."</p><p>"No attempts to establish comms?" The President asks.</p><p>The Martian shakes his head, "No. It's silent in the EM Spectrum and its running deathly cold. Whoever is in command of that vessel doesn't want to be detected. If you were to invade a system, you can be sure I would advise you to do something similar to this vessel here."</p><p>The room is quiet until the President says, "I'm thinking board it if we can't establish comms."</p><p>"Mr President," An older advisor in the room speaks, "Can I advise against that. We board it now and we let them know we can detect their stealth vessels. If we let them think they are still able to operate undetected, we can gain more intel, we can find out where they are interested in and bolster our defences there."</p><p>"I disagree," Another speaks up, "Every second its out there, its finding things to attack. If we take it out now, those Batarians come in blind, giving our people precious time to work. If we board it, we take the soft approach, and can return their people once we know they are of no threat. Also, I must advise against establishing comms, it would just give it time to plan an attack, run, or send what data it has gathered back to whoever owns the vessel."</p><p>The President taps the table, torn over what to do. Eventually, he asks, "What else can we do?" The room is quiet, so the President breaths in, nods and then says, "Get me the detailed plans to board it." Upon this command, numerous assistants in the room set to work. "But! Before we do anything, how can we bolster the defence of this system?"</p><p>A woman speaks up, "We have people ready to drag broken up pieces of what was once Charon in front of the relay and detonate them into a million bits. Any vessels that come out on our side would be forced into emergency slow manoeuvres, giving our Stealth vessels easy pickings. We can also mine it with either more Ultron platforms or Tritium mines."</p><p>The President swallows a little; a Tritium mine would be a hell of a surprise to whoever was unfortunate enough to run into one. "Alright, do it. Are we redeploying the fleets at all?"</p><p>"Yes." An admiral at the table says, "We are sending our fleet to the outer rim, for now, we are going to have to hope Ultron can handle the fleet above Earth. May I also suggest we advise the Turian fleet of our plan to mine the relay, it may cause them concern to see activity around it."</p><p>"We will." The President guarantees, "Once the Asari translator is back on board her vessel to translate for us."</p><p>1 hour later</p><p>The President cracks his neck before nodding to an assistant who hits a red button on a black box, which connects him to the fleet in Orbit where Benezia is waiting. "Matriarch Benezia," The President greets.</p><p>"Mr President," Benezia returns, "I have Fleet Commander Quirinus waiting for you."</p><p>"Fleet Commander Quirinus, we must advise you to leave our system." The President tells the Turian, "We will be mining the device you used to enter imminently." It takes a while to translate this message as 'mining' and 'imminently' do not register with Benezia, so other words need to be found that can convey the same meaning.</p><p>"As you desire," Fleet Commander Quirinus returns, "Can we maintain communications through this device?" Some military advisors find it odd that the Turian is not wanting to stay in system.</p><p>The President nods once the message is converted enough for him to understand. "Yes."</p><p>"Then we will speak again when the diplomatic part arrives. Is there anything else?"</p><p>"Yes. As you seem to know them, please inform the Batarians not to enter our system, we will come to them if needed."</p><p>"Understood. Fleet Commander Quirinus out."</p><p>When the Turian ends the call the President turns to his military advisors, "If the Stealth Vessel does not leave with the fleet, we will give it a few hours for the Turians to tell the Batarians our message, and then if it still makes no effort to turn tail, we will board it."</p><p>6 Hours later</p><p>After no sign of the Stealth Vessel turning around the President give the nod which allows the Martian crew to board the unidentified vessel. The initial attack was a swift strike at the engines of the ship to immobilise it, followed by a strafing run to eliminate its close defence platforms. With these destroyed the Micky's were green-lighted to force entry.</p><p>After a few minutes of watching a video feed from a marines helmet-mounted camera the President pulls a hand down his face, realising he has boarded a ship filled with Salarians, not Batarians. "Ship secure," A voice of one marine calls, "We have 13 captives."</p><p>Standing from his chair the President breathes out as he removes a tie, "I believe," He starts, "I may have just kicked a hornet's nest."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Organised Contact</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Primarchs Chosen is seated in a chair as he looks intensely at an image projected onto a wall in his quarters. In his hands, he holds an electronic notepad that is displaying the same image projected onto the wall, the only difference between the two images is that some hand-drawn notes adorn the version on his notepad. Since learning of the Human tendencies towards Stealth Vessels, Caredeus has been studying Salarian strategies and tactics, knowing that the amphibious allies enjoy partaking in Stealth Warfare - despite their claims to the contrary. He knows he will need to employ tactics he is not the most rehearsed in, and so, he has been taking any and all opportunities to study stealth warfare.</p><p>To his side sits a Salarian Captain, who for the last few hours has explained using a few recordings from battles during the Krogan Rebellions and Rachni wars why Salarian Stealth Vessels acted as they had. Now, after hours of lessons, it is up to Caredus to tell the Salarian Captain on a new recording he has not previously seen or studied as to what the Stealth Vessels will do before they do it.</p><p>"They won't engage." Caredus says after a few moments to think some more, "Cluster 1 will move to the far side of the local moon, while Cluster 2 will split into two sub-clusters. The first sub-cluster will break formation and shadow at a distance of 5 million miles, and the second will move to the Relay to block comms."</p><p>"Close, and in a similar situation today, we would have followed this logic." The Salarian Captain replies, "But at the time of this conflict only one vessel was required to block Krogan communication channels, they lacked any true sophistication back then," He sniffs, "So only one vessel was sent to the Relay. The other 4 ships in the sub-cluster cluster joined the others behind the moon."</p><p>The Turian flares his mandibles ever so slightly upwards, he is glad to know that he is thinking along the correct lines of thought. If he can predict and understand how the Salarians would use Stealth Vessels, then maybe he can predict how the new aliens will use them. Hearing the door to his private chambers chime the Turian stands from his chair and opens the door to see the ships 2nd in Command waiting for him in a rigid at attention posture. After exchanging pleasantries, Fannus asks, "Development, I assume?" The man would not be here otherwise.</p><p>"A report has been sent from one of our forward reconnaissance vessels." The Turian 2IC says before he breaks from his rigid posture to hand the Primarchs Chosen a datapad.</p><p>Faunus reads the reports blurb before telling the man, "Change formation to A6 and have Fleet Commander Quirinus join me when his fleet arrives."</p><p>"As you command," The second Turian replies before saluting the Primarchs Chosen and turning to do as asked.</p><p>Closing his door behind him after dismissing the 2IC, Faunus returns to the chair he was sitting in earlier. "So," He says to the Salarian Captain, "Your scouts have indicated the QRF fleets return. They are without battle damage." The Salarian blinks his large eyes twice to lubricate them as he waits patiently, knowing that something else is coming, the Turian would not have changed feet formation on this news alone. "They also report that 65 Batarian vessels are sat in front of the Human Relay."</p><p>"We suspected." The Salarian Captain replies when he believes the Turian is finished, knowing that despite not being in the same navy, the Primarchs Chosen is of a considerably higher rank of an allies navy and he needs to respect that. "Should they play the game right, the Batarians will be able to get considerable concessions from the Council."</p><p>"Yes." Muses Faunus, "We also predicted something like this would happen. The Primarch has allowed me to act accordingly - but he has made clear we are not to give anything for their obedience. This mission is a Council Operation with the Galaxies security in question."</p><p>The Salarian slightly widens his eyes before replying, "We would not have expected anything different. But it is my duty to inform you that while the Salarian Government can not condone any hostilities at such a time, I can inform you that many in power would voice support."</p><p>Faunus squints his eyes a little at the Salarian before reaching for his drink and taking a sip of water. Putting the glass down a short time later he looks back to the wall in front of him and says, "So, we have one and a half clusters behind the moon and one vessel at the Relay."</p><p>/.../</p><p>6 hours later</p><p>Faunus returns the salute from Fleet Commander Quirinus before replying to the man, "So, you return unscathed." The statement is a question in its own, asking for the untold story.</p><p>"We do," Quirinus responds as he falls into step with the Primarchs Chosen, "The Humans advised us to leave once they noticed the Batarian fleet. They are preparing their system for an invasion."</p><p>"I see," Thinks Faunus, "So they must have eyes somewhere close by."</p><p>"They do," Quirinus tells the Primarchs Chosen, "But we have not been able to detect them. Human stealth technology has proven to be beyond what our sensors are capable of."</p><p>Quirinus moves his mandibles in an agreeing motion, "We have Salarian reccy vessels working on that. One is in their system as we speak; the other is shadowing the Batarian fleet." It is silently worrying Faunus a little that he is learning of the Human eyes from Quirinus, and not the Salarians shadowing the Batarian fleet.</p><p>"I do not imagine that it is a good idea to have a reccy vessel in Human space," Quirinus informs as he walks into a briefing room that has multiple monitors decorating the walls. The room's purpose is to gather intelligence from people who have just returned from off-ship missions, meaning it has all the equipment and aids required for someone to inform of what they had done, and seen. "I think they are trying to outswim a territorial Hanar."</p><p>Seeing a good bottle of smoked Turian spirits on the table waiting for them, Faunus picks up the bottle and says, "And why would that be?" After speaking, he breaks the wax seal of the bottle and sniffs the contents - A Turian gentleman would not be caught drinking from a bottle that he has not personally sniffed the contents of. After giving Quirinus a sniff, Faunus grabs two glasses from a nearby presentation case.</p><p>Fleet Commander Quirinus waits for the Primarchs Chosen to pour two glasses before handing him a datapad. "When we arrived in system, we had no idea the 3rd planet was a heavily built-up garden world, or any of the other inner planets; they somehow managed to hide that from our optical sensors. If that is not good stealth technology, then I do not know what is. Further to this, it is the ground crews assessment that this is their place of origin. If this was Palavern..."</p><p>"Hmm," Faunus ponders aloud as he hands Quirinus one of the glasses. A navy defending their homeworld is a navy with a dedicated crew, and a navy with everything to lose.</p><p>Quirinus takes the glass from the Primarch's Chosen before clinking the glass with Faunus's own. With the glasses clinked, Quirinus being the lowest-ranked member in the room states, "To the Primarch and the Spirits that guide us." Before taking a sip of the beverage, Quirinus turns to the bow of the ship, as is Turian tradition when making a toast onboard a vessel.</p><p>With a toast to the Primarch done, Faunus can make a toast to whatever he desires, "To the Turians of Quick Reaction Fleet 35, and their unwavering service in the face of the unknown."</p><p>With the toasts completed Faunus holds the datapad Quirinis give him up so he can read it. After a while, he looks up from the datapad and says, "I see. This news, this stealth technology they have, unfortunately, does not overly startle me."</p><p>"It does not?" Asks Quirinus with some surprise.</p><p>"No." Faunus replies before approaching a TV screen on the wall and logging in to it. When logged into the screen, he brings up some documents for Quirinus to read. As Quirinus reads the document, Faunus says, "Higher Command has been busy going over your scans of the Human ships you have encountered. They are constructed from Relay Metal." Faunus lets this settle in for a second before expanding on his statement, "The Primarch fears they have a huge Prothean cache they are mining for technology."</p><p>"Faex." Quirinus immediately responds, showing a slight lapse in professionalism, "This all makes sense. The Humans we have come across are adept at the Prothean language, have ring worlds, Quantum communication technology small enough to fit in a box, advanced stealth and weapon technology, and now Relay metal. It will explain why you have come with such a powerful containment fleet."</p><p>"Yes," Faunus says aloud. "Now you understand the enormity of this situation; I need you to tell me anything which can give us the edge, should force be needed."</p><p>"As you command," Quirinus replies with a small flare of his mandibles before taking another sip of the Turian spirit - the drink is an expensive brand only the most elite in society can afford, so it is enjoyed in small sips. "But let me recap. We have sent a reccy vessel to their home system, there is a Batarian fleet just outside their Relay and ready to knock, and now we are about to arrive with the largest containment fleet seen in centries."</p><p>"Hmm." Faunus hums in agreement. "Quite an invasion fleet, would you not think."</p><p>"Indeed." Quirinus replies, "And so think the Humans. As we were leaving their system, we witnessed a large build-up of asteroids in front of the Relay exit point - dragged there by human vessels. They also informed us that they had mined the Relay."</p><p>Faunus moves to another monitor before grabbing a pen-like device and begins to draw on the screen. First, he draws a quick military symbol for a Relay, and then he illustrates a small circle around it. "How far would you estimate them to have mined?"</p><p>"I could only guess, but we detected some ships up to 50km away from the Relay. It is possible that they have gone further, but most activities we could detect was within 50km."</p><p>Faunus stops drawing and turns to look at Quirinus, "There must be more to this." A traditional minefield around a relay expands far past 50km, this is due to the dispersal constant of the relays, meaning ships can exit a relay up to 100km from it, this constant is something which the ships have little control over. The Turian Hierarchy dictates that a minefield around a relay should be no less than 150km to be effective.</p><p>"I don't think so," Quirinus replies to Faunus, "But this has had me wondering too. It was the CV Avian that opened the Relay, not the Humans, so I do not believe they had previously discovered the Relays."</p><p>"Now that is an interesting hypothesis." Faunus agrees as he stands back from the display he was previously drawing on, a hand clasped to his chin "So, do they have another means of FTL do you think?"</p><p>Quirinus clucks his tongue in thought before flaring his mandibles downwards slightly, "We saw nothing of the kind, but that doesn't tell me much. What I do know is their system is as barren as an Elcors Deployment Record when it comes to Element Zero, with not a single trace found on their homeworld by the away team." Elcor very rarely deploys their military; thus, it is almost unheard of for an Elcor to have a deployment record.</p><p>"Doesn't mean they don't have technology which hid it from you like the fact their homeworld was not a barren rock." Faunus points out, "But if not, then it means they either have a means of unknown FTL, or, they are stuck in this one system, and we just unlocked the door."</p><p>"If I were a betting man, I would say those options would be good wages," Quirinus agrees, "But, what has me wondering is if they have a Prothean cache that has gifted them all it has, surely they would have found the Relay."</p><p>"Maybe they did not want to find the Relay." Faunus thinks aloud, "Or they were scared of opening it like the Citadel is today."</p><p>"No." Quirinus says dismissing the idea, "The ground team have good impressions from the Humans, and they did not give me an isolationist impression, they put in the effort to get to know us even though we can barely communicate as is. If they knew that Relay was there, I think they would have..." The Fleet Commander is cut short as a chime rings on the Primarch's Chosen omni-tool.</p><p>The Primarch's Chosen looks down to his omni-tool and sees that it is an important call, meaning he probably has to answer it. "I should take this." He says. Answering the call he says, "Go ahead, Fleet Orchestrator."</p><p>The Fleet Orchestrator wastes little time to reply, "We are 1 light-year from the Batarian fleet."</p><p>"Halt fleet," Faunus tells the man at the opposite side of his omni-tool. "And wait for me to arrive in the Command Centre."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Asari Expeditionary Vessel Destiny Ascension</p><p>Tevos looks around a room filled with workstations and experts of all manners before blinking and telling her guide, "We did well to get this organised so quickly." On many of the monitors in the room, there are dozens of pictures the ground team have taken, some are being studied, others are displayed but yet to be analysed. On other work stations, Asari are working over two books the Humans provided, detailing their language, but progress is slow. It is one thing to translate a word, but something else entirely to put those words into structured sentences.</p><p>Her guide blinks in return while informing, "There is always a first contact team on 24 hours notice to move. When the call came through, it was simply a matter of picking them up from the Citadel. The hard part was getting the Prothean experts."</p><p>"Surely the University could provide on the Citadel," Tevos replies with a frown.</p><p>"Yes." The guide answers, "However, the University is a privately owned institution. They demanded an upfront payment before they would lease the experts we needed."</p><p>This statement from her guide causes an eye roll in the Councillor, "Truthfully, it shouldn't surprise me." Tevos tells the guide, knowing that the University is a Volus owned institution. "But we have the experts?"</p><p>"Yes. We managed to receive four people from the University before we stepped into the abyss."</p><p>"All fluent in Prothean?"</p><p>The guide looks a little uncertain as she replies, "As fluent as we were going to get with the time we had."</p><p>This comment does not give Tevos a warm fuzzy feeling, but she understands the constraints that the team who organised this expedition will have had to work with. "Then we best hope they are fluent enough to converse with the Humans fully."</p><p>Hearing someone approach from behind Tevos turns to find an aged Matriarch, Tevos knows the face, but can not for her life remember the Asari's name. "Councillor," The Matriarch speaks when she is a few feet away, "I've got something which needs your urgent attention."</p><p>"You have?" Tevos replies with a raised brow.</p><p>"Yes." The Asari responds, "Have a look at this." The Matriarch powers up her omni-tool and pulls up a grainy image. "Have a close look at the bottom right."</p><p>Tevos squints at the grainy image before feeling her stomach drop a little, "That is a human, isn't it?" Tevos could be wrong, but it looked like the Human was on a Batarian world. "Who sent you get this?"</p><p>"Yes, it is a Human. Now, would I not be wrong in thinking that this should be an urgent Council matter." Tevos notices the fact the Matriarch only partially answers her question, but she does not push, the missing information is not likely to provide a likeable answer.</p><p>Tevos blinks her eyes, she knows if the Salarians have found out about this image, then they will have the STG launch a raid to capture the Human in order to study it, and the Turians would send the Blackwatch to bring it back for interrogation. Further, Tevos knows that the Human would likely be sold, and incredibly quickly into what would likely be the Batarian hegemony where they would become virtually untouchable. "Yes." Tevos concedes, "Come with me." Tevos guides the Matriarch to a private room where a communications Terminal that is used for Council transmissions can be found. Signing into the terminal Tevos logs into a top-secret program before setting some options which bring up Council assets in Batarian space. Looking through the assets, Tevos sees something which will be of use to her. "Tela Vasair," She says aloud, "She is a Spectre, loyal to the Asari, and her last logged position puts her on a path to a nearby world."</p><p>"A perfect candidate to bring the human to ourselves then." The Matriarch comments.</p><p>Tevos silently blinks as she taps a message into another terminal to send the Spectre a message through Asari Comm links, that way the message will be untraceable, and she will not need to inform the other species. When the message has almost been sent to Vasir, Tevos looks up as she notices the internal lighting of the ship has changed from a harsh white light to a soft yellow, indicating a change of threat level. After quickly finishing the message and sending it on its way, Tevos makes her way to the bridge of the ship, where she finds the Captain speaking to an ops officer. As the conversation seems to be important, Tevos waits for the conversation to come to an end before speaking with the Captain, "What is the current situation?" She asks.</p><p>The Captain leads Tevos to a work station that is manned by a Target Acquisitions officer. "This dot here, it's a Batarian vessel." The Captain informs, "It's just arrived."</p><p>Tevos leans in closer to the screen to peer at the dot so she could read the information displayed next to it, "A lone frigate?" She asks.</p><p>The Matriarch in control of Asari's most powerful war vessel blinks before pressing a few buttons, "We also just received this." After pressing another button, a video begins to play of a Batarian Admiral. Tevos listens to the Batarian and waits for him to finish before speaking, "They want to join our containment efforts?"</p><p>"So it would seem," The Captain affirms, "The Primarch's Chosen..."</p><p>"Is against the proposal." Tevos interrupts, "He made his name hunting Batarians so working with them..." Tevos is well aware of Faunus Cardeus and his so-called remarkable victories against Batarian Pirates. Frankly, in Tevos's mind, the man has committed numerous war crimes to achieve what he has. Yes, the man is effective at his job, maybe even the best, the Turians certainly think so, but the standard you walk past is the standard you accept, and in this case, that standard is war crimes.</p><p>The ships' Captain clenches her fingers slightly, "Actually no, this was his response a few moments ago."</p><p>The Matriarch plays an audio message for the Councillor, in which the Primarchs Chosen unexpectedly accepts the Batarian aid. "What is his train of thought here?" Tevos asks aloud "The Batarians will have an ulterior motive. They almost always do."</p><p>"That is what I was just discussing," The Captain informs, "But he actually has sound logic in this situation."</p><p>"He does?" Asks Tevos, obviously wanting to know more about the situation.</p><p>"Yes." The ship's Captain brings up a zoomed-out image of the local space surrounding the Destiny Ascension, up to 2 light-years out. At this scale, Tevos notes that the Containment fleet is holding position one light year away from the Relay. "We know the Humans have eyes on into space immediately surrounding that Relay, and we know they are scared of invasion. We need the Batarians to move light years away so that the Humans can start to feel ignorantly safe."</p><p>"So by accepting the aid, we tell the Batarians to come to join us where we are right now."</p><p>"Yes." The Captain affirms, "But there is more to it. The Batarians are going to use any opportunity to try and get concessions from us; we are still in their space after all. If we denied their aid, then they could easily have sold to the press that we are the aggressors, and they could sell it well."</p><p>Tevos blinks, knowing just how well the Batarians can sell a good sob story and use that story to get concessions out of the Council. "You are preaching to the priestess about Batarian political tactics. What I would like to know is what are our plans when they show up."</p><p>"So, let us assume the PC is successful in getting the Batarians to join our containment fleet. In this situation, the current plan, which I suspect will change as Faunus war games it, is to send Quirinus's fleet back to the Relay, with the inclusion of ourselves, and 2 Batarian ships. That way, the Humans only see a fleet they know with a few extra's, then we have all the experts on board this vessel to help with First Contact, and the Batarians will feel included."</p><p>"Included enough to demand resources from the Council for military aid." Tevos muses as she crosses her arms over her chest. "I can not see this working well."</p><p>"Nor would I expect the PC to think it will, no plan survives contact. Right now, he just needs the Batarians moved from the Relay, without us using hostilities, what happens after that, well, its Faunus Caredeus we are talking about, if he can't figure out how to dispose of some Batarians, then who in civilised space can."</p><p>"That is what I worry about," Tevos replies, "He is a man who knows how to play Batarians, and he has an incredible fleet under him right now. I think he is up to something."</p><p>The Captain seems to agree from her body language, "On the way to this space, we crossed a single Batarian ship, the PC took a tough line with it, which the Batarians have already wailed foul about. Now, here they come looking for even more of our fowls, but he has disarmed it by accepting their offer. My bet is the Batarians were once more looking at us to deny them so they could once more go to the press with our injustices."</p><p>Tevos sighs as she looks towards an observation window, "I just pray both the Batarians and PC remember why they are here, and who realistically is the real threat."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Lets get the show on the road.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>1 Week later</p><p>Faunus taps the glass desk in front of him with his talons as he rewatches a video for what could possibly be the hundredth time this week. As it turns out, inviting the Batarians to join the containment effort had unexpectedly paid off, when they joined the containment fleet the Batarians freely offered some recordings they had made on their way to the human Relay. These recordings that Faunus is watching now, without question shows some human stealth tech exiting the Relay. The Human devices are 100 meters long by 30 wide and 30 deep; they appear to be constructed from two Y shaped hulls that have been placed on top of one another, with the bases of the Y facing opposite directions. The Batarians only managed to record them for a few seconds before the optical sensors lost them; the ships are black in colour with no windows, meaning that it is very hard to track them. Still, it is enough for Faunus to know that the Humans are no longer contained to their system, and are actively sending assets into Batarian space. What also concerns Faunus is the fact that these constructs are previously unseen, they look nothing like the Stealth Vessels Quirinus has seen, and he can not judge their purpose. They are too small to be full-blown war-vessels by Citadel standards but too large to be a satellite.</p><p>Faunus wonders if they are scout vessels, but he doubts it, the vessels are too small and too cramped to offer any real quality of life onboard, especially for a scout vessel which could be expected to spend months, maybe even years in space and away from replenishing life-giving supplies. No, scout vessels are typically a bit larger, allowing for large storage of supplies, comfort luxuries and entertainment devices on board. His current theory is that they are unmanned drones, but what type of drones they are he is unsure, but if he had to bet, he would put them down as being assault drones - which worries him as he can't find them.</p><p>In addition to the concern regarding the unknown Stealth Vessels, Faunnus has also come to the conclusion that something has happened to the vessel they sent forward and into Human space. The Salarian Captain on board was given strict instructions to return from Human space 96 hours after entering their system. It has now been five full days, one day longer than permitted, and Salarians are not known for being late, to the contrary, in Salarian culture being late is viewed as a social taboo. It would be a lie to say Faunnus is not worried for the Salarians; he only hopes their return has been delayed by the minefield, and not anything else.</p><p>Pushing the concern for the stealth vessel aside Faunnus begins another playthrough of the Batarian video only for a push notification to make its way onto his screen a few seconds later. The notification is from a Salarian Recconisance Vessel, but not the one he is worried for, no, this comes from the one in orbit of the Human Relay in Batarian space. Wasting no time Faunnus clicks on the notifications icon and loads the message.</p><p>The first thing Faunnus sees is a high-resolution picture of what looks like a perfectly spherical ball; its colour is chalk white and size estimates put the ball at 2 meters in radius. Reading the message sent with the picture Faunnus raises a hand to his chin; three of these devices have just dropped out of the Relay, and the spheres have since started to spin at a revolution rate of 1250 revolutions per minute. Each of the orbs has its own direction of spin is in the x,y and z planes.</p><p>It does not take Faunnus long to come to the realisation that these devices are sensors of some sort, but what they are sensing the Primarch's Chosen is not sure of. He has seen and heard of EM spectral scanners, radiation sensors, and Eezo sensors to name a few, but these do not meet the requirements to be any of those. EM Spectral scanners are large devices, and typically you need a lot of them to have a high resolution of the sky you are scanning, and radiation sensors are far smaller than whatever these are. This leaves Eezo sensors, but to detect eezo you need eezo to do so, then further to this, eezo sensors do not need to spin.</p><p>With yet another mystery added to the fold, Faunnus goes back to planning.</p><p>3 Hours later, AEV Destiny Ascension.</p><p>Tevos looks up from an email she is typing to Tela Vasair and to the door of her office onboard the Destiny Ascension as an aid walks in. The past week has proven to be an interesting one for the Councillor as the Batarian Hegemony has freely offered the Human Slave to the Council, which is out of character for the Batarian government. Tevos suspects that this, along with the Batarians providing aid to the Containment Fleet, that the Batarians will shortly be making a power move of some kind and expect the Council to turn a blind eye. It would not be the first time that this has happened, so as a precaution Tevos has quietly informed new and poorly defended Asari colonies to be on guard; admittedly there are more than a few ripe for the picking, so to speak.</p><p>With the aid now stood in front of her desk Tevos patiently waits for her to speak, and she does not have to wait for long, "The Relay is powering up," The aid says calmly. Tevos stands from her desk in one smooth motion, if the Relay is powering up then the Humans must be sending something through, so maybe they are ready to speak. After walking the short distance to the Ascensions bridge, Tevos enters the command room to find a few screens are displaying a 200m long asteroid. With a raised brow Tevos looks to the ships Captain, searching for an answer. "Just dropped out the Relay." The Captain replies with a small shrug of his shoulders.</p><p>Over the next 72 hours, larger and larger asteroids end off leaving the Relay, with each asteroid differing from the last in composition, size and mass. Eventually, the Humans send asteroids too large and too heavy through the Relay, resulting in the QRF fleet having to take emergency manoeuvres to dodge the high-speed remnants of what once must have been a vast asteroid. The Asteroids shredded by the Relays' self-preservation mechanisms. Of the asteroids that did survive, ships searched them for any technology that the Humans may have left behind on them, and sure enough a few pieces of kit which must have been sensors were recovered. Then the Relay went quiet for a full week with not a single peep of activity.</p><p>Just when people started to think that Relay is going to be inactive for a prolonged period, a single object came through, and Tevos once more finds herself on the bridge of the Destiny Ascension. On a screen, there is a large white sphere, and a few readings of the construct tells her it is approximately 200 meters in circumference, but nothing much else is known about it. Is it a ship? A station? One would not know from its appearance alone.</p><p>"Device has begun to spin." Someone announces, and sure enough, the Human device begins to spin, at first, its angular velocity is quite low, but eventually, after watching for a few minutes, its rotational speed is at 880 revolutions per minute. What is it with Humans and Spinning devices, Tevos wonders quietly.</p><p>"Detecting Relay activity." Someone else says moments after the sphere has stabilised at 880 revolutions a minute. Looking to another monitor Tevos witnesses four small vessels dropping out of the Relay; these vessels are the known Stealth Vessels, and they do not take long before cloaking themselves, retreating back into the cold darkness of space. There is a small period before the same voice can be heard again, "Detecting further activity."</p><p>Looking to another monitor which is observing the Relay Tevos allows a small frown to caress her face, the rings on the Relay are spinning fast - dangerously fast. "Whatever they are sending through," The ships' Captain begins to say, "It's perilously heavy." The heavier the object, the more a relay has to work to send it vast distances, and this results in a maximum weight allowance on ships travelling through the Relay system.</p><p>Eventually, when Tevos does not believe the rings can spin any faster two vessels drop out of the Relay. The first vessel is a new type of ship, its 300m long and its hull looks like it is capable of receiving severe punishment which is confirmed when sensors on the Destiny Ascension verify it is made of Relay metal. The second ship makes Tevos wince; it is the missing Salarian vessel and its engines look warped and malformed, meaning its most likely been subject to extreme heat. So the Salarians either melted their engine trying to run from the Humans, or they were attacked.</p><p>"The Fleet Commander has attempted to hail the Salarian Vessel. They are not responding."</p><p>"Yes." The Matriarch in command of the Ascension says, "When Salarian vessels are boarded they tend to complete a full electronics purge. They won't have any software to run their comms, meaning they are unlikely to know we are even hailing them. Also, is it me, or does this new vessel look like its drifting?" It is hard to deny that the new vessel does not look like it is drifting, since dropping out the Relay it has started to slowly spin in the X and Y plane, and some lights along its hull are flickering, which tells the Matriarch that it is unlikely to be in control. "Can someone get me a mass reading?"</p><p>It takes a few seconds but eventually, a sensor expert says, "Initial reading puts it at 620,000 metric tonnes."</p><p>"No wonder the rings were spinning so fast." Comments the Captain, knowing that maximum safe weight allowance for Relay transit is 650,000 tonnes. "How long is the ship?"</p><p>"300 meters."</p><p>The Matriarch frowns yet again, the ship is very small for that weight. "We are under the impression they have no element zero aren't we?"</p><p>"Correct." Tevos informs as the Human ship seems to regain control of itself and stops its uncontrolled spin.</p><p>"Then that will explain the weight as they don't have an element zero drive to reduce its mass."</p><p>Approaching a monitor Tevos notices something on the unknown vessel and points to it, "Zoom in here." Shortly the monitor is zoomed into a small segment on the ships hull. "SSV Praetorian. Do we have a translation for this?" Asari vessels are given names that reflect their purpose, so for example a scout vessel would be named after some great explorer. Maybe humans follow the same protocol?</p><p>After a while someone comes back with an answer for the Councillor. "SSV is an acronym for Systems alliance Space Vehicle. Praetorian as far as we can understand is someone that used to protect a Roman Emperor, with a Roman being a Sea Bream - a fish."</p><p>Tevos raises a brow at the last two words, "Are you sure the definition of Roman is correct?"</p><p>The Asari who give her the translation looks like she is not 100 per cent sure, "According to their document, Roman is a noun, and its a Sea Bream, a type of red or pink fish."</p><p>The Asari do not have long to contemplate what the name means however as the Salarian vessel slowly begins to move towards the QRF fleet, resulting in the Fleet Commander making a small change to the formation of the fleet. How the ship is being moved no one is sure as its engines are visibly fried. After a while of merely observing the Salarian vessel, Tevos witnesses from the comfort of the Destinies bridge as a Turian frigate leaves the fleet and moves to intercept it.</p><p>When the Turian vessel docks Tevos watches from behind a monitor as Turian Marines board the Salarian Vessel through the cameras on their body armour, and thankfully nothing seems to be out of place. The Salarians onboard seem fine, if not a little bored, but if Tevos wants to find out what happened then she will need to wait. The Turians who boarded are too professional to ask questions out of curiosity, so she will need to wait for the ship's Captain to be interviewed and a report filed.</p><p>2 hours later</p><p>Tevos sits down at a table in one of the Destiny Ascensions many messes as she reads over a report that details what happened to the Salarian Vessel. As she reads over the report she drinks an Asari tea that is a particular favourite of hers. According to the report, the Salarians were scanning a gas giant when they were attacked from nowhere. They did not receive anything to indicate the Humans attempted contact before hostilities, nor did they have any indication they were even being watched. The attack was a swift affair, with the Humans disabling engines and weapons simultaneously, leaving the Salarian craft helpless. At this point in time, the Salarian Captain ordered a complete purge of all electronics on the ship, which unfortunately deleted any information they did gather, even information of the attack.</p><p>Before Tevos can read much further, a voice calls to her, "Mind if I join you?"</p><p>Looking up Tevos blinks and she is soon joined by the ships Captain. "So," Tevos begins, putting the report she was reading down. "Any more news?"</p><p>"Situation no change." The Captain replies before gesturing to the report now resting on the table. "How is your report reading?"</p><p>"Like a diplomatic nightmare. I assume you have read it?"</p><p>The Captain blinks, "Yes. The humans attacking doesn't surprise me."</p><p>"It does not?"</p><p>"No." The Captain clenches her hands around her own mug of Asari tea, "These humans, they are fond of Stealth Vessels, which leads me to naturally believe they will have a lot of doctrine based around stealth warfare. Now, you introduce the Salarians in a Stealth Vessel probing their home system while a alien fleet is in their home system and a Batarian fleet is waiting at their systems door, and you can bet they will not take kindly to that. If I were the gambling type, I would say these humans may even view that as a precursor to invasion, which is why they demanded you leave their space. What has surprised me is that they have returned the Salarians so soon."</p><p>"Because you would want to see who comes calling for their lost ship? You could gain a considerable advantage on a political table with this."</p><p>"Not quite," The Captain clenches, "Because they are letting us know they have better stealth technology and can find our stealth vessels with ease. We now have a much clearer understanding of how out matched our stealth vessels are and considering we are by design not supposed to know how capable stealth vessels are, we have just gained a greater understanding of their own."</p><p>"Or," Tevos counters, "They are trying to stop any more Stealth Vessels from entering their space by telling us outright that we are no match in the stealth department? Or they realised they made a mistake attacking the vessel and are hoping by returning our people we do not do something..." Hearing her omni-tool begin to ring Tevos answers the call before quickly putting placing the Omni-tool down so that the ships Captain can see its display. "The Human box, its beeping," Tevos announces as she presses a few buttons, bringing up a live video feed from the First Contact team.</p><p>From the angle of the video, Tevos can see the back of an Asari who is about to accept the human call, and the box itself, meaning she will be able to witness the interaction. After pressing a red button on the human box a holographic image of a human woman forms from the top of the comms device. The conversation that follows is short, with the Human very much taking the lead in the conversation. After what must be about 5 minutes, the human ends the dialogue, and the human communication box deactivates.</p><p>It takes no more than 5 minutes for the conversation to be translated thanks to AVINA translation software and Tevos allows a small smile as she reads the transcript's bluff. "The Humans have thanked the fleet for their patience, and have requested for docking procedures. They are going to send a party of ten, to the Ascension."</p><p>30 minutes later - AEV Destiny Ascension Hanger Bay.</p><p>"The shuttle," The Ascensions Captain says as she gestures to the small human vessel which is just about to arrive, "Check this out. Its hull is made from Relay metal, if that isn't impressive on its own, its age is even more so, it is 2 days old. The Praetorian, 5 days old. They made that ship in under a week."</p><p>Tevos clenches her fists slightly, showing a little disbelief, "Sensors must be wrong?"</p><p>"I thought that too." Admits the Captain, "But look at this." The Captain raises an image on her omni-tool, "That is a close up of their docking port."</p><p>Tevos looks at the image and notices that the port is to Citadel Standards, and it's built into the hull, meaning it isn't an addition to the ship post-production. "Okay," She admits, "They made a vessel of Relay metal in under a week. What our shipyards would do to get some of that capability."</p><p>"Eezo tech could make a good trade." Implies the Captain.</p><p>Tevos once more clenches her fists. "No. Producing Relay Metal on that scale is the holy grail of material science, and I bet they know it. I think we would have to work hard to make that deal a reality. Also, they have the Hanar ships they half-melted still in their space - they could probably work a few years and get a working model from them."</p><p>Seeing that the Human shuttle is about to land Tevos gestures to it with a flick of her head, "Well, let us get this show on the road."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Bells and whistles.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Tela Vasair sits down on a royal purple sofa in a single elegant motion before crossing her right leg over the left and sliding down the chair, giving her a seductive pose. To Tela's side stands Urdnot Wrex in his scratched, battle-tested armour, his beady red eyes are scanning the room, taking in its every detail. "Master shall be along shortly." A slave Batarian informs, "Would you like refreshments in the meantime?"</p><p>Wrex is the first to respond. "Ryncol," Is his single worded request. Tela opts for a more delicate water - drinking on the job is unprofessional.</p><p>By the time the 'Master' comes, Wrex has been served two servings of Ryncol, and Tela has become most bored, the Batarian has used a common Hegemony tactic on her of making her wait for him. As he approaches the sofa, Tela does not stand as is expected, if the Master wants to play games by making her wait, then she too can play her games. "Your late." She says with an obvious lack of interest expressed in her tone; she offers no form of greeting - an insult in Batarian culture. "And that's close enough, I can smell you from here."</p><p>The Master shows no reaction to not being greeted or her initial statement, and instead brushes it off to say, "The Council will always come second to his Hegemony, Spectre." Silently Vasir is impressed she did not receive a bite to any of her previous comments.</p><p>"Well," Tela says as she moves to stand from the sofa, "You have wasted enough of my time. Let us get this transaction over with."</p><p>"Yes, I suppose we should," The Master replies before looking to Wrex, "Your creature for sale? For a Krogan he is unusually large."</p><p>Tela hears an audible rumble from the Krogan to her side before hearing his loud footsteps as he takes a few strides forward and towards the Batarian, "Do I look for sale?" He asks pointedly, his red beady eyes looking into the Batarians own - even Tela silently admits to herself that she would squirm under such observation.</p><p>Unsurprisingly the Master quickly back steps from the Krogan and says, "This way," To Tela. "Leave your brute here."</p><p>As Wrex grumbles something along the lines of 'thought not' Tela falls into step with the Batarian. "So," Tela asks, "Is there anything I need to know about it?"</p><p>"Other than the fact we have no means to talk with it, and Asari can't meld with it; no." The Master says before leading Tela through a thick wooden door and into a small living area with numerous beds set up. "There it is." The Master then says while gesturing to a Human laying lazily on a bed.</p><p>Tela has seen the first contact report released by the Council, and the more secret reports, so she knows that this creature is actually a Human and not some dim-witted prank by the Hegemony. What does surprise her is despite knowing what they look like, the pictures and videos do not do the species justice; they look even more like Asari in person. Looking around the room, Tela also notices another occupant, a one she will be back for later, a one related to Aria T'loak. Tela could not believe her luck when her Council tasking had her going to the exact same place as her job for Aria.</p><p>/.../</p><p>AEV Destiny Ascension.</p><p>In the small-time they had before the Humans arrived, it was argued what type of affair this event should be. Some corners of the First Contact team argued that this should be a grand affair, with all the bells and whistles, but others argued that it should be a small but formal event. Eventually, it was decided that the affair would be a small one, in order to replicate what the Humans had done for themselves, that way, it would not look like they were trying to outshine the Humans. At this point in the negotiations, everything needs to be done in a way that makes the Humans feel comfortable, all to increase the chances of positive relations. Yes, making the new species feel 'comfy' may be a costly manner of doing things, but the riches that come after far outweigh negative relationships. Once an initial peace deal is signed, and some positive relations are made, then and only then would one think about trying to show off.</p><p>Waiting for the Humans to disembark from their shuttle are four representatives of the Council species, so a Turian, an Asari, a Batarian and a Salarian, along with a few other officials such as the Captain of the Destiny Ascension and Matriarch Benezzia whose role is to assist with translations. Of all those gathered, only the Turian and Asari representatives are actually trained in First Contact protocols. The Salarian representative is actually a diplomat whose most exceptional work includes negotiating trade deals with the reclusive Quarian Fleet, and the Batarian is the admiral of their fleet. This is because Salarians live short lives meaning that the chances of experiencing a First Contact in one's life are slim, so a 'calculating' Salarian would not waste their short lives in training for something highly unlikely to happen to them, and as far as Tevos is aware, Batarians do not hassle with 'First Contact', preferring to leave that to the Council - when not in their space. The true reason the Batarian is in attendance is that his fleet is currently with the rest of the Council fleet, and due to their proximity to Human space, it would be prudent to include them. Truthfully, including the Batarians' is more for Humanity's own protection than to make Citadel diplomacy easier with the Hegemony. The only other addition is the Ascensions Media officer whose job it is to record the event, they have no role interacting with the Humans.</p><p>Of those gathered, Tevos stands to the back, preferring to let the professionals handle the situation, but she also wishes to be close enough to witness the event first hand. After all, first contacts are usually historical events, and the Councillor has no doubt this will not be a moment for the history books. The news cameras are already rolling, and the Humans are yet to step out of their craft.</p><p>After a small period in wait, a ramp at the rear of the Human shuttle lowers with a mechanical whine to make contact with the floor of the hanger, and just as the ramp touches the floor a familiar Human with green hair begins to walk down the ramp. Fortunately, the Human is not in armour, carrying weapons, or walking with a demeanour that could cause concern, instead, the Human is dressed in plain clothes and walking with a little caution as they look around their new alien surroundings. Tevos recognises the Human immediately, the alien is the one responsible for rescuing the Avians crew and providing security on the tour of their homeworld. It is worrying that Humanity would send their soldiers for the negotiations, but it is also curious as to why this soldier is not wearing her armour; unless she is not here in an official capacity.</p><p>After a small-time period a second, then third, and finally forth person follows the green-haired Marine down the ramp. All the Humans look different from one another, they do not wear the same clothes, they don't have the same hairstyle, skin colour, facial features, no, they are truly diverse from one another - maybe by design. To the contrary, all Asari are almost indistinguishable except from slight skin tone variation, all Turians are at least the same height and the same metallic colour and all Salarians at least have the same skin tone, along with their trademark black eyes.</p><p>The initial greeting seemed to go well from Tevos's perspective, with the green-haired soldier leading, there was an initial bow of the head towards the Asari, but a more unsure shake of the hands with the Turians and Salarians, with the Batarians they seemed even more uncertain, maybe even cautious. Why they are careful of the Batarians Tevos is unsure, so far the Humans have not shown too much caution for anything they have done in person. Eventually, it comes evidently to Tevos that the Humans have obviously gone over any recordings they have made, and have realised that Asari typically bows their heads in greetings. In contrast, Turians only have verbal greetings, and Tevos would come to learn later that the Humans had tried to say these, but their vocal cords are physically unable to make the notes required, much like her own species. Salarians are able to greet one another by flushing the skin on their faces with a chemical that creates a small glow outside the Asari visible spectrum. Tevos doubts the Humans are even aware of this; it took the Asari an embarrassingly long time before someone realised. The longest part of the entire initial introductions was the Salarian announcing his complete name and the Humans trying to repeat it. After all, any given Salarian will have six names, the 'first' name is their homeworld, followed by nation, then the city, trailed by district, then clan name, and last of all, is their given name. This particular Salarians name is Rannadril Ghan Swa Fulsoom Karaten Narr Eadi Bel Anura.</p><p>After the initial greetings pass, it comes apparent that the Marine is only in attendance to provide a known and friendly face and is only here to try and make the initial disembarkment from the shuttle to go a little bit smoother. It also comes clear that while the Citadel Fist Contact team were expecting ten Humans, this was a mistranslation, and only five are in attendance, the Marine, the three diplomats, and an unseen pilot who is still onboard their shuttle. This mistranslation silently raises the question if the interpretation team is up to the task of negotiating a peace deal, but this will have to be seen.</p><p>Realising that the Marine will be returning to their shuttle, having no part to play once past the initial greeting, an idea was quickly posed by the Captain of the Ascension; while the diplomats do their thing, why not give the two other humans a tour of her vessel? After all the Humans had openly invited them to their home, so it would be rude not to return the favour, even if she could only offer the Destiny Ascension at this moment in time.</p><p>The flouted idea caused a conversation among the Humans in their native tongue, most likely so her people would not understand. Eventually, it was settled that only the Marine would attend this tour - their pilot is to remain on the shuttle for 'opsec' reasons. Tevos may not be military, but she understands the intent of this, they are leaving a person behind on their shuttle to stop any unwanted visitors from sneaking on board when no one is there and having a good snoop around.</p><p>When the diplomats leave the hanger bay to go into what will most likely be long-drawn and dry discussions with one another, Tevos, the Captain of the Ascension and the Marine are left behind and to their own devices for the tour. While one might expect more security due to a Councillor being in attendance, the fact the Marine is known to Tevos, and both herself and the ship's Captain are powerful biotics, it's decided that no more security is needed. Had the Marine been armed, or had the Aliens shown less desire to get to know the Council species when in their home system, then the likelihood would be that some security would have been provided, or Tevos would not participate.</p><p>When the Human realises who is to be her guides, she turns to Tevos with a slight frown, "Prothean?" She asks.</p><p>Tevos points to her omni-tool as she replies in her own native tongue, "In a fashion." A small implant resting on her audible nerve provides her with a real-time translation, and her omni-tool translates her native language into Prothean. This was not previously available on Earth as the software required to make the translation was not available.</p><p>"And yourself?" The Human asks the Captain.</p><p>"Much alike." The Captain replies, which makes the Human look a little relieved, probably because it's going to have someone to talk to. "My name is Irissia, and this is Tevos." The Captain gestures to Tevos, "If I am correct, you were with the ground team and rescued the Avians crew?"</p><p>The Human waits for the omni-tool to complete Irissia's translation before asking, "Your Prothean difficult, say again?" Irissia does as asked, allowing the Human to say, "Correct. Name is Shepard." The Human holds her hand out, resulting in Tevos and Irissia shaking her hand in turn. "So, where to?"</p><p>Usually, a tour of the Destiny Ascension would start at the docking port, where a small room is set aside to explain the origins of the ship, and why such a ship was dreamed of by Matriarch E'Lenor, but Captain Irissia feels like such an explanation is not needed. The Human does not need to know of two galactic wars, an AI uprising and the Councils general fear of the unknown - yet. Instead, Irissia asks the question, "Where would you like to start? We have the engine room, the..."</p><p>The Human cuts Irissa off, in a polite way, to ask, "Show me you." The request at first causes some initial confusion, but it's quickly realised what the Humans intent is; she wants to see the Asari. The aliens request at first seems simple, but thinking on it, how does one show the 'Asari' on a warship that is not the embodiment of the Asari themselves? Would Humanity claim they could show their own species off on a warship? Irissia doubts it, but she is not afraid to shy away from the challenge.</p><p>"Then we start on deck 19."</p><p>Deck 19 is the 'amusements' deck, for those on the vessel with a day off, it contains restaurants, gyms, entertainment halls, and numerous other means to keep the 10,000 strong crew busy on their down days. Arguably, the deck is one of the most important as it keeps morale high and Asari sane on long missions.</p><p>The first 'challenge' was passing through security, where the Human managed to set off some alarms, how, Tevos is not initially sure of, the Human was just walking, and she had nothing on her except herself and her clothes. With a wave of the Captain's wrist to head of security, the warnings are silenced, and the tour continues, but Tevos makes a note to investigate why the alarm went off. Getting to deck 19 itself was not too difficult, it required a short walk along some half busy corridors to an external elevator and then a ride 21 decks up. As the elevator slowly makes its way to the top floor the Human perks up, saying, "So, you're the Captain of this vessel, but I'm not sure who you are." Once more a few words need to be clarified for a full understanding of the Humans Prothean. Before either Tevos or Irissia can respond and deflect the question to hide the Councillors true identity, the Human continues to speak, "Your people surprised to see you, as much as myself."</p><p>Irissia starts to reply, but a look from Tevos stops her, allowing the Councillor to say, "When we first met, you said something to me, what did you say?"</p><p>The Human gives a rather Asari like frown, before saying, "leader."</p><p>Tevos quickly blinks her eyes, "I am a representative of my people on a Council. How did you know back then?"</p><p>"A job role I have is to protect important people," The Human confesses, "The spikey guys, the Turians? they give you away." The reply Tevos gets is broken, but she understands the gist of the message.</p><p>"And what is your job?" The Captain inquires.</p><p>"I am a soldier." The green-haired Human admits as she takes to looking out a window in the elevator. The elevators window allows the Human to look outside of the Destiny Ascension, and onto the rest of the fleet that is hovering in nearby space.</p><p>"Then how do you know Prothean?" Tevos asks. The Councillor knows if she asks in the right way, she may gain some insight into how much technology the Humans have from the Protheans.</p><p>The Human turns from looking out the window of the elevator to tap her head, the first word she says Tevos takes to mean computer, the second word, however, is unknown to Tevos's translator. Eventually, after some back and forth, it is settled that the Human is saying a 'head computer.' The Councillor takes this to mean that she, much like herself, has a chip in her head that allows her to translate, but from the sounds of things, unlike her own, it will enable the Human to speak Prothean real-time, making it far more advanced than Tevos's translation tech.</p><p>Feeling necky, Tevos asks, "How did your people learn Prothean?"</p><p>The Human has an initial hesitant look as if they are debating about telling or not, but after some seconds to contemplate she says, "Talking word book. You?" This does not really confirm much to Tevos, the Humans have had to have come across a beacon of some sort to know the language; what she really wants to know is just what type of beacon they came across. The problem is, Tevos does not feel like she will get that answer - yet. The Human in front of her is military, and military people are usually trained to keep their tongues tight on security matters; to this Human this type of information is probably 'security' enough to stay quiet - if she even knows.</p><p>"Similar," Tevos eventually responds while knowing full well that there is a large Prothean data cache hidden away in a temple on Thessia. The Human seems to shrug her shoulders like this was no big deal, allowing her to go back to looking out the window as the elevator slowly makes its way to the 19th deck.</p><p>After a while, the Captain asks, "Do you have Faster Than Light?"</p><p>The Human seems uncertain of her answer before saying, "Not my place to say." She then taps the elevators thick glass, pointing to a ship in close proximity to the Ascension. "What type of ship." It is an obvious attempt to distract from the question, and Tevos can't blame her. The question asked can reveal just how vulnerable Humanity is.</p><p>The ship the Human has pointed to is the Turians QRF Dreadnought. "HWV Accipitridae. Turian dreadnought." The Captain informs. "Does it look anything like your dreadnoughts?" This could tell the Captain a lot of information about how Humans fight their battles.</p><p>The Human shakes her head, "That ship is kind on eyes. Ours not so much." Irissia thinks on the answer and understands where the Human is coming from. While Turians are very practically minded, they do also like having vessels that sacrifice some practicality for aesthetics - after all, they like to show off their military to regularly remind people they have the biggest stick. In short, the Turians want people to look at their vessels, so they need eye-catching ships. When hostilities arise, this approach often goes under review, and vessels that favour function over aesthetics quickly return. Eventually, the Human turns from the window to ask, "This ship bigger?"</p><p>Irissia is sure the Human probably already knows that it is, but is trying to make some conversation. "Yes, the Ascension is 1km long, 1.7 wide by 2 tall."</p><p>As the Human, now known as Shepard, and Irissa go on to talk some more about the ship, Tevos receives a notification on her omni-tool and loads it up to find a message from the ships security department. With a small frown, she flicks through the email, skimming its essential details, and eventually, she lands on a scan of the Human that is standing just a few feet away from her. The Human must have undergone some extensive augmentation procedures, she has bones reinforced with graphene, muscle weaves, and embedded technology inside of her, all of which is highly illegal in Citadel space. More curiously, Shepard also has traces of Eezo in the graphene of her reinforced bones, meaning she has either been exposed to it recently, or she is biotic. The latter is something Tevos doubts, her reasoning being from Shepard's reaction on Earth at seeing her own and Benezzia's little biotic show.</p><p>With a frown, Tevos closes her omni-tool as the door to the elevator opens, exposing deck 19. The Humans presence at first seems to cause everything to come to a halt, if this Shepard notices, then the Human doesn't mention it as she steps out the elevator and looks around. Immediately in front of her is a dozen or so street vendor style food courts, and a large comfortable seating area. At the moment, maybe a hundred Asari are sat down eating, and maybe a dozen others are at the stalls, waiting for food to be cooked for them. In Tevos's opinion, the food in this court is junk food, it is fast to make, and filled with chemicals and sugar to make them edible, but she can't deny that the vendors serve tasty food.</p><p>Instead of asking to get stuck in and try some food, or find out what else is on offer, the Human asks for something different, she asks for directions to the nearest toilet.</p><p>UNSC Praetorian.</p><p>The Captain of the vessel follows the Doctor around the room as the Doctor shows multiple different screens and sets of data to him. Over the last twenty minutes, dozens of his crew have come down with sickness, and the Captain fears a bug has broken out on his ship, but the Doctor thinks differently. The Doctor can find no viruses in people's blood, no bacteria infections, nothing, instead, the Doctor thinks they are experiencing radiation sickness, but not one sensor onboard the Praetorian has detected a leak of radiation. In addition, the 4 stealth ships that have joined them are reporting something similar among their own crew. Seeing another person come into the medical bay looking a little unsteady on their feet the Captain scowls, something has happened to his crew, yet nobody seems to know what.</p><p>Looking back to the Doctor the Captain suppresses a grim scowl as he points to his own nose, his Doctor has come down with a nose bleed - and the Captain bets it is related. Thinking on his feet the Captain can only think of one thing, that dam alien device they just travelled through has done something to them.</p>
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<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Definitions of definitions.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Nassana Dantius, the Asari diplomat sent to negotiate with the Humans and initiate 'official' first contact opens the wooden door to the room designated for the initial talks and gestures for the Humans to enter. Prior to reaching the room Nassana found she had to direct one of the Humans to a toilet as they came down with a 'nose bleed'. A trickling of bright crimson red blood from their nose. The bright red nature of the blood surprised Nassana, she had expected something less vivid, maybe a darkish brown or marron.</p><p>As there are only three humans, to not make them feel uncomfortable and intimidated by being outnumbered in the negotiations, only the Asari, Turian and Salarian representative will be in the talks. The Batarian admiral has been told he will sit this one out, however, he will have the liberty to listen in to all conversations from a nearby room. If the Batarian has any points, they will be raised by the Council representatives. When all the Humans have entered the room, the Council representatives follow and then take a seat at a large round table. They did not use a square or rectangle table to subtly play mind games; experiments on Council species have regularly shown that a square or rectangle table with opposite sides occupied help compound the 'them verse us' idea in one's mind.</p><p>The Humans, having been carrying leather briefcases with them, open them up when they are sat down at the table and Nasanna finds that they have been carrying a few different things with them. In one suitcase she finds they have brought paper and rather fancy looking writing utensils, some are ink based, others are pencil based. In one of the suitcases, there appears to be some device of some sort, what its purpose is Nassana could only guess, but she quickly finds it is a portable printer. In the last suitcase carried by the third Human, Nassana finds the Humans have brought a few thermal flasks, mugs and what must be edibles. A wise idea Nassana thinks, knowing a hungry stomach can effect how one thinks; she would not want to negotiate when hungry. When the Humans are set up and ready for the talks Nassana finds that they each have a mug and a biscuit in front of them; they had offered some to Nassana and her team but they politely declined - they will have their own treats.</p><p>As with most things so far, once the Humans have set themselves up, Nassana allows the Humans to lead the discussion, which results in the Humans announcing that they want to dictate temporary borders and sign a treaty of non-aggression. The request is reasonable, so Nasanna starts on the first topic, it is the simple question of 'What is aggression'? Humanity may view aggression very differently to the Council, and Nassana is expecting it. No one race has the same laws on what exactly aggression is. For example, Electronic Warfare is not seen as aggression worth military action by the Asari, but a Turian would see this as a military attack, and respond with firepower, and the Salarians would view it as a challenge and hack back. The talks on the definition of aggression last a considerable time, so long that the Humans finish then refill their drinks. The talks hit many topics, from powering shields, to how one turns their vessel to face another. The most interesting, and quietly embarrassing revelation is how Humanity view Stealth Vessels in their space as a serious transgression, with a small quip that wars have been started on less. While true, Nasanna would learn many years later the human diplomat was thinking of a Human war fought over a bucket of all things in which more than 2000 men died.</p><p>Just as Nassana thinks the topic of Stealth Vessels are about to be dropped, the Humans continue, saying, "So to clarify, these three vessels will not enter our space? Swipe the screen left to right." The Human speaking hands over one of their 'Phones' to Nassana so she can see what they are talking of.</p><p>Nassana raises a brow, she knows there are now two Salarian Reconnaissance vessels in nearby orbit, and she knows one of them the Humans already know of, they attacked it and dragged it here after all, but the claims of a third vessel she is puzzled by. With great curiosity Nassana does as asked, her first swipe produces an image of a Salarian Vessel, the single reccy ship which has not been rough handled by the Humans. The second swipe, however, causes great concern in Nassana, the image clearly shows a small Geth vessel, the design is without question. With some dread at what is to come next, Nassana swipes right again, this time the vessel is unknown to all the Council representatives. The unfamiliar ship is a giant insectoid looking thing with what looks like insect-like legs, its design is definitely meant to intimidate. Pushing the tablet device back to the Human Nassana schools her emotions to inform them that the last two vessels are not Council, and thus she can not speak for them. This causes some internal discussion among the Humans and eventually one starts to type a message out on their phone. As the Humans do their own thing, the Turian representative calls an aid over and informs them to alert the captain of the ship of the Geth - their presence will be of great concern to the Primarch's Chosen and the Fleet Commander. The other unknown 'insect' vessel while worthy of great interest, are ultimately of a lower priority and will probably be ignored.</p><p>Thinking on it, Nassana understands why the Humans have informed them they know of the Stealth Vessels, it is to say 'We can see you.' It also stops the Council from denying knowledge of their existence, but the Council can play this game too. "Since we are talking of Stealth Vessels," Nassana announces, "We also know you have them, and we know they are here with you. We would expect the same courtesy to apply, they will not enter our territory." The Humans accept this without issue.</p><p>After what seems like hours of talking just to agree on what 'Aggression' means, the matter of borders is raised. Typically, Nassana finds borders in space are far easier to call than land borders as there are some very fair and standard rules that one follows. The essential Council regulations that Nasanna must follow for today states that the single known Human system - their home system, is their sovereign territory, the Council, nor any affiliated state can lay claim to it. The other rule, which Nasanna must follow will cause issues, as this rule claims the system immediately connected to the home system is also theirs, whether they have requested it or not. This rule was implemented as it stops Council Patrols from straying too close to a Home system which has in the past been viewed as aggression by Council races; most notably by the Elcor.</p><p>The problem Nassana has today is that the system they are currently in is owned by the Batarians, and now by Council law, it should rightfully belong to the Humans. Because the Batarians have not invested anything in colonising this system, that shouldn't be a problem, but the Batarians will not take kindly to it. This, however, is a problem for the Council at a later date when more thorough negotiations begin, right now, they simply need a line set in the sand where the Council do no venture without express permission. A sphere with a radius of 384,400km around the Relay is proposed as an exclusion zone.</p><p>When the Salarian representative explains this, the Humans look among themselves and have a light discussion before asking what the Council determine 'Exclusion Zone' to mean. The answer is simple, and it is the Turian who replies, articulating that no Citadel affiliated vessel will enter. The Humans again raise the point that this must include Stealth Vessels, and the Citadel team agree that it does. Before agreeing with the exclusion zone, the Humans ask yet another simple question, how big is a Citadel km? Just because they may have the same Prothean name for it, that does not mean that a Human km is the same length as a Citadel km. The solution to this is unusual, but something that is indisputable. The Salarian to Nassana's right gives the length of the Relay to human space in kilometres, accurate to the millimetre, with this, the Humans should have no issue with determining their interpretation of 384,400km. After some quick maths the Humans nod between themselves, to them, the exclusion zone is more than acceptable.</p><p>There are half a dozen more items discussed before Nassana hears the golden words of, "So, all we need to do now is put the terms on paper." Nassana allows a small celebration inside her head, the Humans, while being thorough about terminology, are being rather agreeable; she can work with this. The most important part that Nasanna can deduce is that the Human's do not want any hostilities, the hours of talking about 'what is agression' taught her that. Despite the small internal celebration, Nassana knows the real hard part of the day's activities is upon them; constructing the document which states in clear writing what has been agreed. This is because despite the relatively short nature of the talks so far, there have been countless words that have had to be explained because of language difficulties, and some of them have been simple words that appear in everyday conversation. To write a legal document with these issues, Nassana knows that it is going to be a long and dull task. She knows if the Humans are anything like herself, then they are about to scrutinise every word written before they even think of signing any treaty, and this can take a lot of time.</p><p>Just as they are about to jump into the challenge ahead of them, Nassana frowns as the same Human from earlier raises a hand to their nose, once more there is a trickle of crimson red blood.</p><p>/.../</p><p>The President of the Systems Alliance stands from his chair and looks out a window on the UNSC Jörmungandr; or at least he thinks he is, in truth the 'window' is just a very high-resolution video screen that is presenting what would be seen if there was a window there. Outside of the Dreadnought, he can see the defensive installations that are being constructed, including the 'Mouse Trap' as the workers have come to know it - officially known as Sol Defense Installation 01. The Mouse Trap is a small ringworld, 7km in circumference that carries tremendous amounts of firepower. If anything comes through uninvited, then it will be met with enough wrath to disintegrate a small planet, along with Jörmungandr, a substantial assortment of Ultron platforms, mines and the rest of Humanities small fleet of stealth vessels. There is even two Planetary Assault Craft in attendance, acting as mobile platforms to launch fighter craft; never in human history has so much firepower been brought together for a single purpose.</p><p>When the aliens had left Sol, it was argued what defensive system should be set up around the Relay, some people wanted dozens and dozens of Jörmungandr class dreadnoughts just ready to pounce, with every other type of weapon prepared to go. Even the President must admit that this would be a phenomenal amount of firepower, but while this would have provided the best possible defence, it had a simple problem - who would man these beasts of war? The Navy was small to start with, pitifully small, and most military officers deplored the idea of taking people from the reliable and more advanced Stealth Vessels, heck, just manning the Jörmungandr and the two PAC's was a real task in its own. People who have long been made retired or left service have been called back up just to man what they currently have. The only reason they could man the ringworld is that the ringworld was already under construction as an automated mining facility. In essence, most of its processes are automated, meaning it only needed people to man its guns that have been added hastily into its design. In some secret reports only seen by a handful of people, it can also be found the Ring World is being used because in the future, it can be used as a 'passport office', but the Public does not need to know this yet.</p><p>With a sigh, the President retakes his seat and pours himself yet another coffee, "So," He starts off after taking a sip, "We have talked about the alien front, how is the home front? I saw some disturbing footage on the news channels." Unfortunately, the President has noticed that a lot of terminologies he uses these days are military terms, such as home front.</p><p>A man who is attending the call via holographic representation shakes his head, "People have started to act more and more irrationally as time goes on. We have people raiding stores, stockpiling random foods and goods, others are taking all their energy reserves from the banks, and then we have those who think protesting is the best way forward. My favourite act of lunacy at the moment is a conspiracy that the QEC centres are inviting the aliens here, resulting in numerous centres being set on fire."</p><p>"How long have we had the Quantum centres?" Asks the President with some disbelief, the question does not require a response. "And what are they stockpiling now? Goo still?"</p><p>"Replicator goo, Baked Beans and Tomato soup." The man replies, ignoring the sarcastic comment about how long Humanity has had QEC. "The biggest concern is the Replicator Goo, this is essential for space assets." Goo is essential for space assets as it vastly reduces the amount of space required for storing food, it does not go off, and it does not need to be held in special containers to keep it at certain temperatures.</p><p>Someone else in the room speaks up with a satirical tone, saying, "Well, I understand the soup and the goo, but the beans?"</p><p>The President ignores the joke to ask, "Is there any need to worry yet?"</p><p>"We have made farms that harvest goo supplies a top priority, we have people from all trades working the fields and factories. If this keeps up for more than a few weeks, then we then need to begin worrying about it."</p><p>"Most people are obtuse." The President responds with a flare of hand gestures, "What can we do to mitigate?"</p><p>"Further rationing, instead of 2 cans make it 1. That way, South America will come into summer when we need the next bout of supplies."</p><p>"But the crops required for the goo is an invasive species." Supplies the President, knowing that South America does not grow the crop. "But we will be rare if things go south. Do what we need to." Despite all the modern technology available to Humanity, Earth is still by far the biggest producer of organic products, and the Replicators need organic products to work. "After goo, what are the latest and loudest demands?"</p><p>"At the moment? They want to know if we are going to build defences on the other side of the Relay, and they want us to start on it already."</p><p>The President gestures to Defense Installation 01 with a free hand while saying, "With what resources? Never in human history has so much of our economy been spent on military assets, right now, 63.2% is going straight here."</p><p>"A lot of people want more."</p><p>"Then we have to cut other projects." President deadpans, "And what will people want us to cut? Welfare? Not happening, infrastructure? That will last till little jimmy down the road has a power cut due to old infrastructure needing to be replaced and he can't charge his house. There is little we can cut unless we outright declare a total war economy - which we are essentially already at. Next time a reporter asks us to spend more, ask him or her what he or she wants us to cut."</p><p>A person who has so far been quiet asserted, "Declaring a Total War economy may not be a bad idea." There are no surprises that this person has military links. "It would let us do what we want more so then what we can at the moment. I would love to spend some more on Augments."</p><p>Someone disagrees as they immediately speak out, "We declare that and people will become more militant than they already are, and I already know people are digging bunkers in their back yard." Concrete sales have gone through the roof, as has diggers.</p><p>"I agree." The President blurts out, "The word 'War and Total' is not what is needed at this moment in time. As far as I want to be concerned, we have an uneasy ceasefire being discussed with the Council people."</p><p>"We could make a word up." The person suggests, "Instead of 'Total War' why not, "Preservation Economy', or 'State of Emergency' Economy."</p><p>"People will know." The President shakes his head. "I wonder how stressed this Council's economy is at the moment."</p><p>"There are multiple species. I bet not much."</p><p>Just as the President is about to speak again the military advisor speaks up, "We have just had word back from the UNSC Praetorian, they have declared a medical emergency on board. All four stealth vessels accompanying them has declared a similar situation."</p><p>The President sits a little taller in his chair at this news, "Go on."</p><p>"People have started to drop down with what appears to be moderate radiation sickness. People are bleeding from their nose, gums, and are vomiting. What worries me is we already have people aboard one of the Council vessels."</p><p>The President breathes out a deep breath as he shakes his head, "So we send them through the alien device and they all come out sick as a dog, and now we have sick people negotiating our place in this galaxy."</p><p>"Not everyone is showing symptoms." The military advisor says. "Just enough for it to be a big problem. The crew sent to talk could be fine. My largest concern is if this alien device has caused the sickness, bringing people back through it could kill them."</p><p>"Can the ships deal with it?" Asks the President. "Do they have enough medical supplies?"</p><p>The advisor shakes his head, "The situation is still developing. They don't even know what has happened to the sick yet; they speculate some sort of radiation poisoning but can't find any evidence of it."</p><p>"What a mess," The President fumes, "Support them however we can, but I think sending more people through that alien device is out of the question for now."</p>
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<a name="section0015"><h2>15. A Personal Tour</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Shepard returns from her visit to the toilet with a slightly more upbeat demeanour, what changed in the Human Tevos does not know, but either way, that is not important. What is important right now is that the Human can tell a good story when she is back among her own people, something that can make those who listen to her stories think 'wow' or at least gain a little bit of curiosity. In actuality, Tevos knows that what this Human sees now can define the difficulty of future relations, because this is the first time a Human will see any Asari Culture, and if it likes what it sees, then hopefully it will talk and spread a good message, making her a walking advert for the Citadel species. This will be the event that provides Humanity with their fist impressions of Asari culture, meaning its importance can not be understated. Sure, Tevos knows that it is vital to winning over a species governing body, and they are doing that right now through the more official talks being held elsewhere on the Destiny. Still, she likewise knows its equally important, if not more so to win over the people.</p><p>When the Human was away, Tevos and the ship's Captain had time to consider; they wondered between themselves as to what they wanted to show the Human. Tevos wanted to show some aspects of Asari Culture; she wanted to show her the art of Laryissa, the sculptures of Nyreen and the sports that air on prime TV. The ships Captain, on the other hand, had differing ideas, the Human is a known front line soldier, and thinking about a typical front line soldier in the galaxy, it will be a creature in chase of excitement. Typically, this job of showing off Asari culture would have been left to the first contact experts, where a plan is most likely already set in stone, but as the soldier was not expected, the experts were not ready. After some light discussion between Councillor and Captain, it was agreed that the two would take the Human to the Sports Halls. Due to the crew of 10,000, the Sports Halls on the Destiny are well stocked and can accommodate most known Asari sports, even high contact sports such as Slam.</p><p>Before setting off to the Sports Halls, the Human asked if she could 'record' the days' activities, and with no real concerns raised by the Captain as the tour was not going to go to any sensitive parts of the ship, permission was quickly given. In part, permission was given so easily because Tevos wanted the Human to have something to take back to her own people on top of stories, but it was also permitted as Humanity allowed the ground team to record when on their homeworld freely. Granted, the Destiny is a warship meaning different rules will apply for recording equipment, but she is a well documented and photographed ship at that. Instead of doing something expected such as pulling out some sort of recording device, or powering up something equivalent to an omni-tool, the Human just blinks her eyes, resulting in a slight blue glow around the Human's green iris's. It is a little unsettling to Tevos at first, but thinking on it, she has seen the scan of the Human and knows to what extreme degree it has been augmented.</p><p>The shortest route to the sports hall is through the Botanical Gardens of Thessia, a large room dedicated to relaxation, and as the name suggests, the room has a garden that is tendered to a high standard by the vessels gardening club. As the Captain explains the importance of the room for the crews mental well being, Tevos can tell by the Humans eyes that it is more interested in the plants and its surroundings than the explanation, so the simple question is raised, asking if the Human is into gardening. Surprisingly, or unsurprisingly depending on who you asked, the Human admits that it is, which results in a good half hour of simply exploring the plants in the garden. Tevos, having her own extensive garden at her estate on Thessia and her home on the Citadel was often the one who explained the flowers, knowing from her own experience what they were.</p><p>As the Human happily investigates some Thespian flowers, it occurs to Tevos that as a collective, the Council do not really know what is important to Humans yet. It is evident that wildlife is high on the list; otherwise, they probably would not have been so keen to show them off when the ground team went to their world, but other than that, what do these Humans really care about? This one has an apparent interest in botany, is this shared among many other humans? Should Tevos and the Captain just spend the rest of the tour in this one single room? Or is this Human a false representation of Humanity? The sad truth is the fact that no one on the Destiny knows, or could even hypothesis, Humanity simply still has too many unknowns.</p><p>After a while, the Human breaks away from the plants and apologises, mentioning that she could have stayed all day, but understands that time is of a limiting factor so they should probably move on. While the Captain was not too pleased the Human shares the same interest in flowers as the Councillor, the time spent flower watching did allow her to ensure some sports are being played in the sports halls.</p><p>Getting into the sports halls the Captain is pleased to see that a round of Slam is just about to begin, with Slam being a high contact sport that makes big credits in Asari space. Some Slam athletes can earn as much as 10 million credits in just one season, which bewilders most; however, the athletes can often receive nasty life-lasting injuries such as broken bones that result in paralysis and fractured skulls. The aim of the game is to secure a flag in the middle of the pitch, and return it to your own 'home base' but as three teams are in play at any one time, it can create some fascinating games that suck in viewers. The three teams playing today are from the Engineering department, the Essential department and the Commandos. Typically, the Commandos are the far more powerful biotics and have the upper hand in any game they play. In a 1v1 the Commandos would win against any other department on the ship, however, as three teams play on the same triangular pitch and at the same time, often an uneasy alliance can be found in the first few rounds, pitching the two other teams against the Commandos.</p><p>In the game, biotics can be used to hurl people around the pitch, or if close enough, a form of hand to hand can be used to slam someone to the ground. It is all, Tevos must admit, very exciting, with something going on at all times, be it a show of biotic strength or deceit and sly tactics from a certain team, and it is for this reason it has become one of the largest games within Asari space.</p><p>Before the game starts, Tevos takes a seat with the Captain and Human at the back of some stands, and then when they are sat someone brings over a nutty snack and a drink of some sort. When handed the beverage, the Human makes some comment regarding that this is a familiar scene before getting what Tevos recognises to be a 'mobile' out to scan the drink and food. After a very Asari looking shrug, the Human begins to nibble away at the nuts and sip at the drink supplied, which Tevos notes is alcoholic.</p><p>When the game begins after a quick and basic description of the rules by Tevos, the Councillor watches the Human with interest, looking for her reaction. At first, Tevos notices the Human looks interested in what is going on, then something happens which confirms to Tevos with absolute certainty the Humans are unaware of biotics. The Human begins questioning the blue light, at first the Human says simple things like "Eh," or "Just... what?" and even, "How?" There is also a fair amount said in her native tongue that is lost on Tevos.</p><p>The response from Tevos is simple, "Yes?" It is a basic question, asking the Human to expand on her confusion.</p><p>To which the Human simply replies, "The blue luminescence."</p><p>It is clear what the Human means, so Tevos tries to clarify as much as she can with the Prothean translator, but she knows it will be futile to try and explain the physics. The Humans response to this explanation puzzles Tevos a little, it was something to do with eggs, meaning Tevos can only assume it is a colloquialism. Colloquialisms are some of the hardest things to understand in different languages and cultures because to understand the message, you must first understand what the saying is referencing.</p><p>After 20 minutes or so, the trio moves on, and explore the rest of the sports halls where the Human gets to see some martial arts, racket sports, and feats of athletics. In the last sports hall they visit, the Human gets a whiff of some food being eaten a small distance away and comments that it smells particularly pleasant. With an idea in mind, the Councillor raises the idea of revisiting the food hall where the Human could try a few different types of food found in Asari culture, and the Human readily accepts.</p><p>When halfway through a small dish of food the Human compared to a Martian slowfry, the Humans asks a simple question, but an important one at that. "So, do we look like you, or do you look like us?" The language is not so clear, but her meaning and intent are apparent.</p><p>Tevos takes the diplomatic approach, "We look like each other."</p><p>The Human finishes her mouthful before gesturing for Tevos's hand. When her hand is in the Humans, the Human stretches it out before placing her palm to Tevos's palm. "Five fingers, knuckles, fingernails. It seems odd we evolve on different planets, yet, we are so similar."</p><p>Tevos takes a second to think, but she does not pull her hand away. Eventually, she says, "There are many species that look like us. 2 legs, 2 arms, 4 or more fingers, 2 eyes. There is a theory that we all have some sort of common ancestor, but what is exclusive to your race is your hundreds of strands and diversity." More than a few words need to be expanded and explained for the Human to understand her response.</p><p>Eventually, the Human asks, "None have hair?" She pulls her hand through her green hair as she asks this as if to exaggerate her own hair.</p><p>"None." Replies Tevos, "My own people are inquisitive as to how it feels, does it feel like the hair of the dogs we met? What colours can it be, and what is it used for?"</p><p>This seems to cause a chuckle in the green-haired Human, "Well, it's mostly for heat insulation, natural hair colours are red, brown and blonde. As to how it feels." The Human pulls its hair from behind its neck and to the front of its body, "How does it feel?" She then asks.</p><p>Tevos tentatively reaches a hand out to touch it, and after a couple of seconds, she has her answer, "Soft, considerably softer and smoother than the animal's hair."</p><p>The Human replies with a comment relating to conditioning hair, for whatever that means, before eventually asking about the other species. She asks all the questions a young child asks when finding out that they are not the lone species in the galaxy. Who is the oldest? Who is the most populated? How heavy is a Krogan? Do the other species have biotics? Can a Krogan wag their stumpy tail? All the usual questions.</p><p>Ultimately, the conversation comes to Tevos mentioning the Citadel, and when shown a picture on Captains omni-tool, the Human does not seem overly impressed, even less so when she finds out that the Asari did not make it themselves. Tevos can understand why the Human may not be too impressed, above Shepards own homeworld exists a ringworld far more extensive than the Citadel, and it is something they supposedly made. When asked how long it took to construct, Tevos is a little shocked when the Human says something related to 60 years, however, on second thoughts Tevos does not know how long a Prothean year is.</p><p>It is now that Tevos asks the simple question, why did the Humans build it? And once more with little more than a shrug, the Human says that to her species, Earth is their crown jewel, so they put a crown on it. Tevos understands that this answer is evasive, which means that there is more to it. Could Humans be suffering from overpopulation? Was it a station to showcase military and industrial might? Or, if they are anything like the Batarians, is it an Elysium for the rich and powerful? The Humans answer causes more questions than it answered. "Are their still nations?" Tevos asks to try and figure some things out.</p><p>"Da." The Human responds, before elaborating that she identifies as being from a remote part of Siberia where winter bites hard, and summer is just a myth.</p><p>Eventually, after talking about random aspects of each other's society for the better part of an hour and a half, Tevos receives a call from the diplomats, saying that the Human's are going to retire for the day. The Council diplomatic party offered their Human counterparts some accommodation on the Ascension, but they declined, preferring to return to their own vessel. In part, the diplomats did not expect the Humans to stay, they would want a place to go back and talk in assured privacy, and where they will find ensured and familiar comforts.</p><p>It was then proposed that if the diplomats don't want to stay, then why not ask the green-haired Human? This Shepard character so far seems to be more than willing to explore the new surroundings she finds herself in, so why not wine and dine her in the Ascensions Officers Mess? It is the Captain who asks her, and the offer is presented as one service personnel asking another into the Mess. While Tevos could ask the Human into the Mess being the Asari councillor, it would be frowned upon as she is not a Mess member paying into its funds.</p><p>This resulted in some discussion among the Humans, could they let a soldier mix so freely? A marine who is augmented with some of the finest war tech made? A soldier who was known a hundred years in the past as 'the butcher'? Eventually, it is settled that while unorthodox, and not planned for at all, it could provide greater insight into the Asari military mindset. With the simple order of "Don't make an ass of yourself, and don't be a dick." Blessing by the Human diplomats was given. If the diplomats know about the eezo poisoning, it is not clear to any of those representing the citadel species, in fact, the poisoning starts a small argument among people in the first contact teams, they argue as to if they should even tell the humans with pro's and con's presented on both sides of the argument. It is settled that unless the Humans mention it, the Citadel representatives will not bring it up. Right now, they do not need the Humans to know that they scanned them in detail, something which could be considered a serious breach of privacy.</p><p>As Tevos, the Captain and Shepard approach the Officers Mess onboard the Ascension, Tevos notes that the Human eyes have lost their glow, and when asked why, the Human makes a simple statement, saying "No Cameras in the Mess." It is a statement the Captain understands well, and agrees with. Cameras in the Mess often capture things that should stay in the Mess, and more than a few mess members have found themselves without a job because of what the camera's capture. The footage is never usually the problem, the issue is that often footage is spread outside the Mess and people who have zero involvement start to cry foul about things they do not understand.</p><p>When in the confines of the Ascensions Mess, the Captain offers both the Human and Tevos a tour of the small, but homely Mess, and both accept the tour, each having their own reasons for accepting. While Shepard is interested in what Silver and Property the Mess has, as this can tell her a lot about the story of the Asari Armed Forces, Tevos is more curious as to what history is hidden away in the ships officers accommodation.</p><p>Some things found in the Mess causes great confusion and disbelief in the Human, one particular item was a Tooth from a Threshermaw; and when explained what a Threshermaw is the Human does not believe it till shown a photo of the 'giant killer worm'. The tooth was secured by the ships commandos when they were attacked on a ground side training mission. The other items that held great interest to the Human involved the many paintings that decorate the Mess. Many of the artworks tell the tale battle, of either past ships that the Destiny Ascension took over from, or from the Destiny's own history. It is here that the Humans learn of the Rachni wars and the Krogan Rebellions, and if the stories are correct, then it occurs to Shepard that for the fleets and numbers involved, Humanity is a very small fish swimming in a very big pond. The final item which captures Shepard's interest is a partially decommissioned shotgun of a Krogan warlord during the rebellions, and a comment is made that a weapon of such a high calibre must be used for little more than intimidation. The Human soldier shows great interest in learning that the Krogan actively use such high calibre weapons to this day.</p><p>The rest of the Mess is what Shepard would call small and cosy, the dining hall while formal looking, is far more relaxed looking than a Human Mess, and the living rooms are comfortable looking, and one may actually believe it is designed for living in.</p><p>Getting to her room for the night the Human finds a few oddities, the first being that apparently Asari do not believe in pillows, and the second is that when Humans use red and blue to signify hot and cold, Asari use triangles and circles. There are many other little things the Human notices, but the main thing is that there is a bed along with a hot and cold tap.</p><p>When the Human is distracted exploring her room for the evening, Tevos is pulled aside by an aid which is quick to show her some scans they made of the humans in discrete. Each and every one of the Humans has traces of Eezo exposure, with the Human marine being the worst, it has active eezo absorbed in the metal grafted to its skeleton. This news wouldn't usually concern the Councillor, eezo can be found in most species; however, Humanity's blatant lack of biotic understanding and the deficit of eezo in their home system tells her that they do not know of Eezo. Tevos also knows that without an eezo drive creating an 'eezo bubble', a vessel travelling through a Relay would be exposed to extreme levels of Eezo radiation, to the point that no ship with life onboard would dare travel through a relay without an eezo drive for protection. Truthfully, it is surprising that the Humans are not showing symptoms of eezo poisoning. With Tevos's blessing, the medical corps on the Ascension begins devising plans on how to treat an unknown species from an unknown world with eezo poisoning. The medics are aided by the numerous scans taken while the Humans have been on board the Destiny, and the fact most of the medics have experience working with a mix of species.</p><p>/.../</p><p>UNSC Praetorian</p><p>The Praetorian's Captain looks at the monitor in front of him with a small frown, the fleet in front of him, while of great concern, they are also 'knowns' in that he knows who they report to, or who to blame when they do something stupid. What he does not like is the three Stealth Vessels that are watching in, the first Stealth Vessel the Captain understands to belong to the fleet hovering in nearby orbit, the other two, however, are of greater concern. The second ship is of a differing design to the known aliens, the ship is utterly dark in space and has an almost none-organic design to it, almost as if it was a design by an AI within the R&amp;D departments in Sol. It is a curious thought that the Captain has pitched to his ships AI, but its analysis was that while his thoughts were interesting, it could not be proven. While this unknown vessel is an obvious Stealth Vessel, it does not really give the Captain the chills, it is small, and Ultron's sensors have failed to pick up any real weapon systems on it. Most likely, the Captain ponders, is that the thing will run if it feels threatened - its small size will in all likelihood allow it to easily outrun any Alliance vessel.</p><p>The third vessel is the real problem child, and it gives the Captain the chills, the cuttlefish looking vessel that has what appears to be five glowing 'eyes' was only spotted by Ultron because the President allowed a prototype gravity sensor to be deployed. The gravity sensor works by causing subtle ripple waves in gravity to spread through space and then observing how the waves react. When the device detected something on its scope, optical sensors were turned to its location, and when only a vague outline of something could be seen, one of Ultron's platforms was sent to have a peek. Since detection, the Cuttlefish ship has since done nothing. It has not changed its location or reacted to any fleet movements - which tells the Captain it is confident it is undetectable. With confidence, the Captain knows that arrogance often follows.</p><p>Hearing some footsteps approach the Captain looks up and notices his second in command is approaching, also known to the men on board as the 2IC. The 2IC only salutes the Captain once a day, usually in the morning, otherwise, he would be forever be saluting due to how often the two interact. When the 2IC is a few feet away he opens his mouth to say, "I think the radiation theory holds water." The Captain gives a single look that says carry on. "So, I've compiled a list of people who are sick, and their location on board when travelling through the alien device and I think I've found something; have a butchers at this." The 2IC places a sheet of printed paper in front of the Captain. On the sheet of paper, the 2IC has marked an outline of the Hull and the inner floor plan, then noted where all the sick were during transit through the alien device, "Notice anything?"</p><p>The first few floors have very few casualties to this radiation sickness, as do the last ten floors. After some reflection and thought the Captain says, "Floors 1-6 all have the same truth to them, they are all under thick armour that is designed to take direct shots. The midsection can only say it has enough armour to deflect shrapnel, and engineering has thick radiation shields. I guess the question now is what radiation have we been exposed to?"</p><p>"We only have wild guesses at the moment." The 2IC admits.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Ringworld 01</p><p>A young college student collapses onto his bed after returning from a simple shopping trip, feeling grateful that he returned unharmed. Since news of the aliens, life has turned upside down for himself and most others. In the last 24 hours, the mood has drastically changed, instead of being hesitant and wary, people are now angry, and their frustrations are being felt. Some are not happy because the government has sat on its haunches, and neglected its military, others are unhappy because some view the latest laws aimed at allowing a greater defence of Sol as just an excuse to limit freedoms. Confusingly, others oppose the vast military build-up, and others aren't happy simply because very little makes them happy. Either way, there seems to be more unhappy than happy, and the often violent protests are causing serious problems that the authorities are struggling to control. To the humour of the college student, he must laugh that some of the rioters think the aliens are made up, all in order for the government to elect stronger control measures on the public and re-enact rules similar to conscription. He laughs because he saw them, in the flesh, and he laughs because as mad as it seems, he also directed his telescope to their fleet when it was in orbit, and he believes that even with conscription, Humanity is doomed. Their fleet looked graceful in space as if they were native to the lack of atmosphere and travelling between stars; whereas human fleets look ugly and ready for a bruiser, these fleets look like the product of an artist. The rioters can riot as much as they want, but the aliens will win.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Cheers all!</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Problems</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Sparatus finishes his drink of hiven stomach contents and places the empty mug on the table in front of him before responding to Valern, "Yes, a new vessel. It has been a concern of my people for a very long time now, and with the latest developments, we have at last had the justification required to get the funding needed. Before Tevos returns, we will approach the Council with our plans."</p><p>"Smart," The Salarian Councillor initially replies, "Tevos will be a big opponent, enough so that she will slow down its blessing by a considerable period of time." Valern takes a sip of his own drink, a type of muddy water with some herbs thrown in for flavour, before blinking his large eyes twice, restoring moisture into them that the clinically dry Citadel air saps away. With some mirth, the Salarian then asks Sparatus, "But I must inquire, do these newcomers scare you enough that you are willing to build a costly.."</p><p>"Surely, you know better?" Sparatus fires back before the Salarain can finish, already knowing what Valern was going to imply, "The Primarchs have wanted a stick to rival the Asari's for a long while now."</p><p>"Are you sure?" Tests Valern, the Salarian knows that he can get an easy rise from his Turian counterpart regarding this issue; he knows the Councillor is a big fan of big ships and has been jealous of the Destiny Ascension for as long as he can remember. With a dreamy voice, Valern continues to say, "Relay metal, plasma weaponry, stealth vessels..."</p><p>"All gimmicks." Sparatus shoots back with a waft of his clawed hand. "There is a creature on my homeworld that we can hunt. This creature can toss a Turian 20 meters through the air without a second thought..."</p><p>"Yes," The Salarian now sounds slightly bored, as if he has heard the story numerous times before, "I know of the creature, and I know you are probably about to say something about skill over technology." Contrary to what many may think, Turians similar to the Salarians and Volus actually require technology to be the apex land predator of their homeworld.</p><p>"Then less of my people," Sparatus goes on to say, "What of your own. Your reccy vessel is yet to be accounted for; by now, its capacitors are surely requiring discharge, and I bet the heat sink would have cooked the crew alive by now." The Citadel has not yet received news of the Salarian vessels return.</p><p>The Salarain Councillor blinks his large eyes twice before responding, "The Salarian government refuse to speculate on the Ranitomeya or its fate." The fact the Ranitomeya is missing has been leaked to the Salarian population, and from what Sparatus can understand, there is great concern among the Salarian community.</p><p>Just like Valern, Sparatus also knows how to get a rise out of his fellow councillors, "Then let me embark on a thinking exercise. What if it has been attacked or captured?"</p><p>Valern gives a Salarian smirk before powering up his omni-tool. "I said the Salarian Government. I, on the other hand, can speculate all I want. We know that the ship got into trouble, but that is all we know."</p><p>"Now how would you know that?"</p><p>"Salarian ships are fitted with a basic QEC device. The device can't send data, we lack that capability, but it does send through enough random information that if it stops transmitting, we know something has happened. Shortly after the Humans requested the Fleet Commander to leave their system, the Ranitomeya stopped transmitting this random information. Now, the captain of the ship could have turned off the transmission manually, so the ship may very well be intact, but unequivocally something has happened to the ship." Sparatus wonders if the Salarian only revealed this information as the Turians are close to getting something similar themselves - no doubt the sneaky Salarians know this.</p><p>"How soon after the fleet in the Human system left did the Ranitomeya go silent?"</p><p>"A third of a day."</p><p>"Then it is my bet," Sparatus starts to say aloud, "The Humans have known it has been there the entire time. Now, that must be most concerning for you and your military doctrine." Salarian military doctrine is to win a war before the war starts, and they often enable this through the use of stealth ships; if the Humans can find their stealth ships with ease, then their doctrine is under threat.</p><p>"The thought has passed my mind," Valern eventually admits after a moment of silence. "But speculation will get us nowhere. What will be of use is discussing the Batarians."</p><p>"Ah, yes. The four eyes." Sparatus speaks as if he is referring to people who are a constant source of irritation - which they are. "My military advisors have reported little progress in the talks." In the last week, talks have started between the Council and the Batarian government; the Turians want permission to patrol the Human border, but the Batarians understandably are not keen to allow Turian fleets access to their space. Turian fleets famously hunt pirates ruthlessly and considering a vast majority of traffic in Batarian space could be regarded as pirates, a Turian fleet in Batarian space would cause all sorts of headaches.</p><p>Valern responds without delay, "As have my own. We have many arms we can twist, it is just the matter of twisting the right arm to have the desired outcome. Have you had any thought on the Asari input?"</p><p>Sparatus flares his mandibles downwards, a sign to show that, yes, he has thought about it. "Etiam." He initially replies, talking in his native tongue. "They are split. Half want future space bridges set up, allowing free access to Human space; others want to respect Batarian boundaries. What will be decided in the Asari high council meetings is anyone's guess at the moment. It would be most useful for Tevos to return to make some executive decisions for them." While the Asari have stepped up a temporary replacement, that replacement is a representative with severely limited power - they are merely to ensure that Asari thoughts are heard and considered. The fact that the Asari representative is not in this meeting alone tells of how little power or influence they have.</p><p>"If we leave it to the High Council will be waiting a while before any of us know the probable outcome," Valern remarks, knowing full well that Asari politics is a slow-moving machine. "We need for her return, and we can engage the Batarian diplomatic team as one combined entity. At the moment, without her team's full support, it feels like we are arguing with just the right side of our cortex." No one will argue against the Asari having the best diplomats; they can spend hundreds of years learning the rules and blindly pull out regulations most don't even know exist. Asari often go for the strategy of blinding with their knowledge of policy, and unfortunately for the none Asari, this can tangle teams up for weeks if not months to try and counter.</p><p>"We also need to ensure that the Batarians agree to our patrols." Sparatus adds, "The Batarian economy is taking some drastic hits. If they think they can get some cheap wins from raiding Human assets or space, then they will." The concern here is not for the Humans themselves, but rather for the trade and relations with the Human government. "But what if we fail to secure the patrol routes?"</p><p>"Not good I am afraid," Valern notes, "If our analysis on our newcomers is correct, Humans prefer stealth warfare, much like ourselves. We have seen few actual military assets, but Stealth Vessels keep making an appearance. Batarians, on the other hand, like yourselves, enjoy being seen; our own analysis on the Batarians tell us time and time again, they do not mix well with stealth tactics. Often because they use attrition strategies, they resort to tactics which say, if the enemy can't be seen, then they aren't there." It is for this reason Batarians often raid Salarian worlds, only to receive heavy casualties from installations that are hidden from sight.</p><p>"So, what do we do?" Sparatus sighs.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Citadel Bar.</p><p>General Septimus Oraka pushes his glass forward and towards the Asari behind the bar before turning 90 degrees in his chair to watch the holographic news device that is playing away in the top corner of the bar. At the moment, the news anchor is once more going into details about the Humans, which seems to be a none stop occurrence these days, and Septimus is tired of it all. "Do you know how many Turians died yesterday?" He asks the unamused looking Asari behind the counter. "In the line of service?"</p><p>The Asari does not react much as she pours a new drink into his glass; she is well used to the disgraced Generals rants. "Half a small battalion."</p><p>"114," Septimus says, almost spitting the number out, "114 of my people died hunting down pyjaks, and all these news anchors care about are these multi-coloured soft skins." 'Soft skins' is a common insult for non-Turians.</p><p>The bartender knows Septimus well, the disgraced General frequents her bar quite a lot, and he tips well, so she often goes out of her way to make him feel a little more welcome, even if that means reading into Turian news and ignoring his phyletic jabs. "Let me guess. Raid of Lupanar? Sounded like a nasty skirmish."</p><p>Septimus quickly responds to the Asari. "The raid of Lupanar! 1 Frigate destroyed, numerous ground side installations raided, and families slaughtered. I'm telling you, we should send a fleet and make 'em remember it. Glass in return I say."</p><p>"Oh yeah?" The Asari responds as she goes back to cleaning glasses. "So we shouldn't keep the fleets ready for these soft skins?" The Asari has learned to be a good devil's advocate with her many years.</p><p>"Bah," The old Turian responds with a waft of his clawed hand, "For what? How much do you honestly think the Council is telling you is true? That containment fleet will hold the line." The Turian takes to sipping his drink before going off on another rant, "I know how they think, I know."</p><p>It humours the Asari bartender that this is not the first time she has had this conversation with the man, in fact, she has had it numerous times, just the drunken General gets himself into such a state he forgets. After a while the General has another outburst. "Look at that! More news on the Humans. Protests at the fleet they sent. Pathetic."</p><p>"That fleet is costing us a great deal." The Asari replies, once more being a devil's advocate, "Getting us into debt with the Batarian government. Not a place we want to be."</p><p>"And what do you or these protestors know of containment?" Asks the General. "If you would rather be in debt to the Batarians than the Rachni you need to let us do our job."</p><p>"Not as simple as that." The Asari tuts. "And more than most. You forget my species are long-lived in your drunken stupor."</p><p>"Bah," The General exasperates as he pushes his glass once more towards the Asari, "Have you seen..."</p><p>"How your government is using the Humans to push through regulations?" Asks the bar keep taking a not so random stab into the dark, "Yes. I know your government quietly renewed the License act." The licensing act requires Turians to be given a license to have a child in Turian space, and the licensing authorities often forget about those in opposition parties. "And I know the Salarians are angry that their own government has forced through an act allowing only certain STEM fields to be funded by their education authority." In truth, the Humans have been a good distraction for many, allowing some shady business and deals to go on as eyes and ears are pointed elsewhere, but the Humans have also caused many other problems.</p><p>For the Turians, it is proving costly, people of significance are forecasting an increase in the military budget, which is causing certain stocks and shares to collapse, and others to panic buy in certain sectors. This then causes shockwave effects in the other species as they attempt to counter this increase in spending or limit the damage caused from the panic buying of stocks. Then the fact the Humans have been discovered in Batarian space has caused other unintended effects. People can see the strain between the Batarian and Citadel governments, causing them to judge who will come out on top and as a result, people are abandoning Batarian businesses, which is causing certain sectors to collapse as the market comes unstable and unpredictable. Certain resources the Batarians mine have gone through the roof in cost as a result, and the cheap labour Batarian space provides is now too unstable, causing businesses to pull out for more stable endeavours elsewhere. This then hits supply and demand of certain products, which once more pushes prices through the roof.</p><p>The more the galaxy learns of the Humans, it occurs to the Asari bar tender, the more it costs the galaxy.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Destiny Ascension</p><p>Shepard approaches her phone that is resting on her bed and accepts the incoming call, putting it onto loudspeaker. "Commander Shepard Speaking," She says before she goes back to drying her hair, having just gotten out of a shower. Unsurprisingly, it turns out the Asari also like a good high-pressure shower, although Shepard would have preferred it to be a little hotter than it was.</p><p>"Commander Shepard," A gruff voice speaks in return, "Just so that you are aware, there are a few of us around the table. You have myself, Captain Melchett of the Praetorian, Doctor Michel, chief MO of the Praetorian, and Anita Goyle, head of the diplomatic team."</p><p>"So this ain't a friendly chat." Shepard assumes out loud, "Okay, out with it; what has gone wrong?" One would not usually be so candid with a captain of a ship, but most are not augments who have been through some of Humanities worst conflicts.</p><p>Anita Goyle responds to Shepard, "You still being on that alien ship. Issues outside of our control have arisen, which makes your current location troublesome."</p><p>Shepard rolls her eyes, "Ambassador, just give it to me straight. I am going to have assume because the MO is in attendance this is medically related."</p><p>"Correct." This time its a third unknown voice so Shepard assumes it is the MO, or the Medical Officer speaking. "Most of the Praetorian has been exposed to some type of radiation, with many receiving a lethal dose."</p><p>"Alright," Shepard replies, knowing that there are many treatments for radiation exposure, "How long do I have before its terminal?" Shepard knows that there are many treatments for radiation sickness, providing the treatment is applied in time, so she is not too worried.</p><p>"We don't know," The MO responds, "With you being a Mark 2 Augment, not much is known or willing to be released. If your AI would provide, then I could make an estimated guess." Most forget Augments are paired with an AI.</p><p>Shepard raises a brow before responding, "Should have it now." As the MO looks over the AI's data, the AI does its own quick analysis and realises that Shepard has a great amount of cell damage. It could be queried as to why the AI has not picked it up yet, but the AI is not a medical bot, it is a combat aid, it does not, nor was it commissioned to run a highly specific and detailed health report every two minutes. If Shepard entered a known radiation hotspot then yes, a report would be compiled, but otherwise, the AI would not waste its time running such a report.</p><p>As the MO reads over the data sent, Anita Goyle begins to interrogate Shepard over everything she has seen and witnessed on the Ascension, from the smallest of details to her thoughts on the design of the overall ship. As Anita questions her, Shepard with a now mostly damp set of locks looks at a mirror provided in her room and decides to change her hair colour from green to blue. It will take the nano-particles in her hair a few moments to change their shade but nothing too long. With her hair changing colour, Shepard looks at the evening attire that the Asari have provided her, and for Shepard, it is classy by her standards. To get her sizes, the Asari stood her in front of an orange holographic Asari and the VI instantly stated her sizes before a machine whirred to life and quickly printed her a black dress. The shoes for the evening were thankfully flat-soled, and fortunately, they look rather comfortable.</p><p>After a while, Anita finishes her interrogation and Shepard is told by the MO that she has 18 hours and no longer before she must return to the Praetorian for medical treatment.</p><p>An hour later, Shepard finds herself sat in a regal looking room, the centrepiece of the room is a large wooden table, the wood is coarse, and littered with holes, which makes it feel out of place in the otherwise high calibre room. On top of the table, there are numerous silver looking vessels that contain Asari wines or water, and every so far around the table a set of fancy looking plates, glasses and eating utensils have been placed. Around the walls of the room, there are multiple paintings, most of them appear to be oil-based and of considerable age, and each shows what could be the same Asari with only small differences between them. Out of curiosity, Shepard asked about the table and paintings; she is told that the table is from a defeated pirate that had gained infamy raiding Asari worlds, and the paintings are of various Asari officers who have some significance to the Destiny Ascension. Strangely Shepard is unsure if this comforts her because Human militaries do something similar with their defeated foe's and famous corp personnel.</p><p>At the table sits some of the most senior officers from the Asari's ship, a few from the diplomatic team, and Shepard herself. At the centre of the table sits the most senior officer, that being the ship's captain, then moving outwards are the other officers, with the highest of ranks being closest to the middle. The only exceptions to this is Shepard, who is sat opposite the captain of the ship, and besides Shepard are a few others from the day's activities. While the act of sitting opposite the captain may seem small, if this were a Human mess, it would be seen as a show of respect to be sat opposite the captain. It does not take long from taking a seat at the table for the conversation to move to Shepard. At first, it is small talk, asking about the room she was provided, why her hair is now a completely different colour - many of the Asari were overly curious about this, or how the current room compares to a mess among Human messes.</p><p>Eventually, the conversation moves onto more significant subject matters. "Did you take part in the raid on the Salarian vessel? Or do you know anything about it?"</p><p>Shepard takes a second to translate what was said before giving her response, "No. My team not sent in." Realising that she has been asked a few military questions over the day now that have forced her to give no answer or play dumb, Shepard tries to ask her own, "Why did they commit voyna... - war?" This question makes the table turn to utter silence with everyone knowing their response will have to be very carefully constructed, considering the accusation. After a second or two of silence the Human goes on, "Human space, we don't want your stealth vessel."</p><p>"And I'm sure the Salarian's have learned their lesson," Irissa is quick in her response, "But I have watched the interviews we have had with the returned Salarians. They all praised your people's efficiency onboard."</p><p>Shepard squints her eyes a little as she recognises the attempts to manoeuvre the conversation onto another topic. Not wanting to press with her early topic, she instead jumps onto the new subject, "They messy, but effective." Shepard knows the commanding officer of the team that was sent in, after all the military world is a small one.</p><p>After some back and forth, with the Asari asking why the Human considers the other team messy, the conversation changes again, "So, what is your opinion on AI?" A younger Asari asks Shepard, "Yes or no?"</p><p>Once translated to Prothean, Shepard squints her eyes a little and takes a moment before slowly responding, "AI could be useful. You have?"</p><p>"No." Tevos replies for the younger Asari, "We have strong citadel laws against the production of AI." Tevos was invited to the evening meal considering her status.</p><p>"Bad experience?" Shepard asks "Or fearful of what if."</p><p>Tevos allows a small unfortunate blink, "It is a sad story. A species created them, and now the AI has almost driven the species to extinction."</p><p>"Ah," Shepard responds as if seeing something that she recognises, "Bad code."</p><p>"You don't have them, do you?"</p><p>Shepard once more takes a moment to respond, which tells Tevos that she is weighing her answer carefully, which probably means that they do. "Would it matter?" Tevos makes a mental note to have the ambassadors and diplomats to quiz their human counterparts on this.</p><p>"It would certainly complicate things." Tevos quickly supplies. "It would be better for all if you didn't."</p><p>The Human looks a little confused, "It answers simple questions." Shepard quickly proceeds to get her mobile out that she has been using to scan her food, and power it up, before asking in Prothean, "Glados, what is weather on mud, Haskiv?" The device gives a simple answer back, telling Shepard the temperature, humidity, wind speed, wind direction and chances of snow. "It simple."</p><p>"Can this thing think for itself?" Another Asari asks.</p><p>Shepard shakes her head, "Not as far as I'm aware."</p><p>This causes a small chuckle from Tevos as she realises what has happened, "We call this a Virtual Intelligence," Tevos supplies, "It can only answer programmed questions. These are allowed and actively encouraged."</p><p>"Yes, yes." Shepard replies with a nod of her head, "This slow." As if to emphasise Shepard taps her phone off the table in a roughly handled manner.</p><p>When it is explained to the rest of the room that Shepard was getting confused with a Virtual Intelligence, it causes a small amount of relieving humour. "I think you had us all worried there for a second," Tevos tells her.</p><p>It is another ten or so minutes before another question is asked of the Human which causes some intrigue and the dining table to quieten down. The Human's evening dress has revealed a few nasty scars that run up her arms. In the dim light of the room, a few of these scars have a faint red glow to them, and if you catch the Humans eyes in the right light, there is also a faint red glow from her eyes. Shepard knows that they have probably scanned her by now, and will know of some of her secrets, so she comes out with some of the truth, "Cybernetic enhancements."</p><p>This causes a whole other type of questioning, what do the cybernetic enhancements allow? The simple answer which is easy to believe is that they allow for additional strength and durability on the battlefield, and anyone with a set of eyes would most likely be able to figure that out from a simple scan of her body. When asked how much stronger, it is figured out that the Human could probably lift a Krogan, but unless they go to the gym, the claimed feat of strength is not tested. On a tit for tat question, Shepard finds out that Asari also have cybernetic enhancements, but while hers are for strength, the Asari cybernetics are for their biotics. For Tevos, it raises yet another issue that must be addressed in the future, because Citadel law prohibits certain types of enhancements through cybernetic augmentation.</p><p>Near the end of the meal, Shepard is asked what she wants from the whole first contact situation, which Shepard jokes that as long as there is no invasions, she will be happy. While this may seem rather innocent, it is slightly more alarming for Tevos, and the fact the Human has joked about it, can tell her a lot more than the Human may realise. In addition, it could be interpreted in a few different ways, does the Human not want the Citadel to invade, or does she not want the Humans to invade? It's most likely the former, but the latter is not to be taken off the table. If it is the former, then it tells her that in actuality, the fear of a citadel invasion may be very real for not only the marine, but many other Humans. It may mean that at the moment, future trade and relations is not at the top of Human minds, but rather survival, which may mean Humans could be unpredictable if they feel threatened. If Tevos wanted to dig into, however, she knows that she could translate it to mean many different things, but it is still something worth letting the first contact teams know about and let them come to their own conclusions.</p><p>Eventually at the end of the night, the Human retires mostly sobre, and leaving a good impression to the rest of the Asari officers. This soldier does not seem to be some sort of war-crazed Krogan, or a Batarian that lacks respect, but more like a potential future ally in the making.</p><p>/.../</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. On going problems</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Nassana Dantius, the Asari representative in the Human ceasefire talks, sits in her seat with contained excitement, knowing that in a few short minutes her shuttlecraft will take her to the Human ship. Nassana is excited to see what the Humans present as hospitality with her own eyes, she has heard good things from the people that went to their planet, but she wants to experience it herself. Joining her is the Turian and Salarian representative, along with Matriarch Benzzia; her knowledge in the Prothean language and her past experience with Humans will make her vital. Joining them in the shuttle is the Human soldier, Shepard, they agreed to transfer her back to her own people, as it would be silly to send a shuttlecraft from the Human vessel to pick her up if her team are going to their ship anyway.</p><p>The ride to the human vessel is a short one, with the only thing of interest being that on arrival into the shuttle bay, a large increase in Eezo radiation is detected by the shuttle's sensors, but not enough to cause concern for her team. Turians have tough skin which gives them protection from radiation, and Salarians are capable of being exposed to high levels for short durations due to the fact they have unique biological systems that prevent cancers. Asari, originating from a world with a heavy eezo presence, will have no issues at all. The high eezo radiation is a puzzling one for the team, considering that the Humans had none in their system, but it can be explained due to travelling through a relay without an eezo drive to protect them from the harmful rays.</p><p>Getting out of the shuttle on the Human ship, Nassana instantly notes that the vessel is designed in an unusual style that is a reminiscence of Asari and Turian vessels pre-eezo gravity generators. Whereas Citadel vessels now have decks that stretch the length of the vessel, this human vessel has floors extending the width and depth of the vessel, this means that a Human deck is small, but they have a lot of them. The distinct advantage to this design is that if gravity fails for whatever reason, then the vessel can generate its own gravity by accelerating at a speed that the Humans find comfortable; a Council vessel can not do this, but the obvious downside is that decks are small. Other than this, Nassana's only remarks are that the Human ship looks very spartan inside, nothing can be found that doesn't serve a function. The Praetorian reminds Nassana of a Turian wartime vessel more than an Asari ship. A Turian war vessel during war, and during peace times are two vastly different beasts, the latter is designed to prevent a war by looking ferocious, making any onlookers think twice before starting hostilities, and the former is designed actually to fight a war.</p><p>After greeting her human counterparts, Nassana and team are guided through the spaceship, and as they climb a flight of stairs, the Turian negotiator asks a Human counterpart why there are so many space suits readily available on the walls of the vessel. The answer is that during combat, a Human vessel will vent all atmosphere to protect its crew from pressure waves, so each person on the ship needs a readily available spacesuit. The Turian who has served in the Turian navy appreciates the answer more than Nassana as he is more intimate with the effects of a high-velocity slug impacting a ship during warfare. Usually, it is not the lack of atmosphere, or even the slug itself that kills in naval warfare, but rather the extreme pressures caused in an atmosphere as a slug travels through it at high velocity. Often, in large ship-ship conflicts, mission killed vessels are frequently mission killed because their senior crew who make the decisions are dead, and not because their ships have received critical damage.</p><p>After ascending 5 flight of stairs, Nassana's team are invited into a cosy looking room that contains a circular table in the middle surrounded by a few comfortable looking chairs, on the table rests a large jug water. Unlike the negotiation room on the Ascension, there are no windows that look out into the vast emptiness of space; instead, around the walls of the room are various paintings and pictures. Some of the images on the wall depict Humans that must be famous, Nassana thinks, and some depict some famous event or another. The only image Nasanna does not need an explanation for is a black and white image of low quality; it tells the tale of a large mushroom cloud. The image is an unmistakable message, letting her know they have cracked the atom and used it for its destructive purposes. One or two, she could guess the history of, such as a human in a cumbersome white suit planting a flag, or an ancient-looking spacecraft taking off with what must be liquid fuels. The most notable painting is not the mushroom cloud, or the ancient spaceship technology for Nassana however, those paintings do not tell her anything she did not already suspect. Instead, the most notable painting for Nassana belongs with an image that depicts the Ringworld above the human world as the final segment is dragged into position, completing the 'ring'. If the painting tells a true story, it lets her know that the Ringworld is theirs, and not some Prothean megastructure like the Citadel. While this shouldn't be a problem, it will inevitably lead to issues down the line, Nassana knows the Citadel likes to have all the jewels, so for a new species to have a structure far larger and far more grandiose than the Citadel, then people will get jealous.</p><p>Before sitting down, the Turian representative approaches the image of the mushroom cloud and makes a remark to the Humans that they must not believe in windows. Their response is something Nassana believes the Geth would say, that being that windows weaken the hull.</p><p>"Truer words never spoke," Is the Turians broken response in Prothean before going on to add, "I think our two species will get along well."</p><p>As they eventually sit down to talk shop, the Salarian representative asks why over the night, the Relay started to spit out dozens and dozens of human probes of one type or another, only for the probes to immediately turn tail and return to Human space through the same Relay. The Human answer seems rehearsed as if they knew they would be asked this question; their response tells the team that the Humans are researching Relay transit. To Nassana, it would seem like the Humans are attempting to research it with haste.</p><p>The Humans seem to quickly move the topic on, causing Nassana to think maybe they are attempting to hide something, but, it is not causing an issue for now, so it is not worth sticking on. Picking up where they left off the day prior, progress begins once more, but like the day prior, it is slow work, with the wording need to be precise and agreed upon. Occasionally, some topics would be discussed that the teams had missed the day prior, such as what constitutes as a stealth vessel? The Human definition was far more descript than the Citadel answer and discussed certain technologies which Nassana has no understanding of, which in turn created even more discussions. Eventually, it was settled that a stealth vessel is something operating at around absolute zero kelvin and is operating with the intent of not being discovered, while the temperature decree holds no issues with Nassana, she had to cause further discussions as to what exactly 'operating with the intent of not being discovered' means to the Humans. Thankfully she asked because this caused yet another discussion, where the two sides had to come to an understanding.</p><p>By the end of the second day, there is still a lot to be put on paper, so it is agreed that a third day is required; further, it is agreed that it should be held on the Ascension. The third day is much like the second with the only thing being of note was that two of the Humans in the ceasefire talks had changed out, and more time was needed, so a fourth day is held on the Human vessel. Thankfully, after continually being rewritten due to new issues that were raised, the terms for the ceasefire is signed. The truce is due to come into force eight Prothean hours after the contract was signed, or as it is written in the contract, '28800 seconds, with each second being the duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the Caesium-133 atom, defined as 53 protons, and 78 neutrons. Each neutron is composed of 2 Up quarks, and 1 Down quark, and each neutron built from one Up and two Down quarks. All of this is as at the lowest levels of the thermodynamic temperature scale'. This was the human definition for the second.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Praetorian</p><p>Anita Goyle looks around the deck; usually, the Augment known as Shepard is easy to spot, being an augment from the Marines Shepard is taller than most, and the soldier has a vivid hair colour, both are factors which make her stand out in a crowd. The problem is, however, that most people on the deck are not stood, but either laying down or nursing sick bags. The radiation sickness that has hit the Praetorian since emerging from the Relay has developed in most of the crew, and unfortunately for herself, it would seem like the Augment she is after has also come down ill.</p><p>It takes Anita no short time to find her Augment, and when she does, she wonders if what she is about to ask is a good idea. The soldier has her head buried deep in a bucket, and evidence would suggest the marine is holding the bucket for a good reason. "Commander Shepard," Anita tries, knowing just from her appearance, the soldier is most definitely not wanting to talk to her at the present moment in time.</p><p>The soldier doesn't even raise her head a little to look at who has come to speak with her; instead, she simply says, "Unless you have brought something to knock me out, fuck off."</p><p>Anita realises that being to the point will work best with the Augment, "You have been asked to visit the Asari vessel."</p><p>"Do I look fit to go?" Asks Shepard, whose head is still firmly buried in her bucket. Truthfully, Anita would not send the soldier, it is obvious that the Augment is not fit, but higher powers want the soldier there.</p><p>"It is an order from the top, so pull your head out of your bucket, and stop feeling sorry for yourself. The shuttle leaves in 6 hours time." Anita does not know if she went too far as she hears the soldier take a deep breath in, she knows augments can be short-tempered, and quick to aggression, so trying to order it around when it is obviously ill despite not being military herself may have angered it.</p><p>"Then I'll need something stronger than shuttle sickness tablets." Grumbles the Augment as she slowly lifts her face from the bucket, revealing sickly pale skin. "What's the task?"</p><p>"The mission," Anita starts to say while trying to muster up all her military 'presence', "Is attending a small celebration on the Asari vessel, showing our appreciation for the ceasefire. The alien team have asked for you personally, and your commanding officers want you there." The soldier looks far from pleased, but, at the same time, Anita believes that the soldier has found what strength it needs in order to be on the shuttle at the designated time. "Now get up, there are preparations to be made."</p><p>Just over six hours later Anita looks around the shuttle that has just taken her to the Asari mega vessel, her team, for the most part, all look respectable, but that should surprise no one. With news of the invitation reaching Sol, fashion designers were contacted, and 'appropriate' apparel designs were sent to the Praetorian via digital means so the ship could 3d print the clothes. The whole reason Anita is now wearing a dress by some of the most expensive and upper-class fashion designers is that someone up high realised the importance of showing off good clothes to a society full of human-looking Asari. While many back in Sol are running around with their heads on fire, attempting to plan the defence of Sol, some were thinking of what happens if future relations are established, and an invasion of Sol is not on the agenda; and they realised fashion would be an easy win in terms of trade.</p><p>Most remarkably, even the brutish Augment had managed to get into a representable state, and with enough makeup, its pale skin is a thing of the past; even the sickness was sorted with a liberal prescription of drugs from the doctor onboard the Praetorian. The doctor, much like the Augment, was unhappy with the situation, but, the council representatives had asked for her, and so the doctor had to make it happen, somehow.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Destiny Ascension</p><p>Looking around the room being used for the celebration, Tevos allows a small smile, knowing that so far everything seems to be going to plan. This day had been in planning since the ceasefire talks began, once something was signed, the diplomats were to immediately invite the Humans onto the Destiny to attend a small party, which would be held over the start of the ceasefire. When the Humans arrived onto the Destiny an hour earlier, a message of love and peace was delivered in the Humans own tongue, using everything the first contact teams had learned of the Humans to form the sentence. A translator is still a long way off from being developed. Then the Humans were invited to this room where they were to have a few drinks in celebration. In less than an hour, a painting of 'Shepherd's Gift' would be presented to the Humans, which depicts the Human Shepard as she offered Captain Corvinus safe passage on her own vessel. The idea of the painting was chosen as the Humans have shown numerous times to be fond of paintings, which depict significant events and right now, the Citadel is still out to try and win the trust and friendship of Humans. Just getting the Humans to consider a ceasefire was the first step in what will hopefully be a long and prosperous future, and the first contact teams realise that there are many more steps to be had.</p><p>As Tevos looks around, she finds Shepard half bent over near the back of the room, and being propped up by a table. Her demeanour seems considerably different since the day she provided the Human a tour around the Destiny. Getting a few feet away from Shepard Tevos says, "You look like you have seen better days." Tevos still relies entirely on her Prothean translator.</p><p>"Tell me about it," The Human grumbles as she stands up straight, revealing a slightly pasty looking face. "Excuse me; I need to visit the bathroom."</p><p>Shepard leaves Tevos quickly, and makes her way straight out of the room, avoiding and ignoring anyone who makes contact with her. It is a walk that Tevos has seen many times before, it is a walk of someone who is about to vomit, but Tevos is sure the Human has not been drinking. With a frown and some curiosity, Tevos follows the Human to the bathroom and finds her curled over a toilet, a vivid red substance filling the toilet bowl.</p><p>Tevos takes a moment to reflect on what she knows before accusing, "I know you are suffering eezo poisoning, how advanced is it." It is bold of her to accuse in such a manner, but the evidence for the Humans being poisoned from the substance is mounting by the second.</p><p>Shepard takes a few deep breaths before standing from her bowl and pulling a hand through her hair to pull it away from her face, this results in a small clump of hair coming away with her hand. With a scowl, Shepard throws the strands of hair into the toilet before replying to Tevos, "I'm fine, just ate something..."</p><p>Tevos considers for a second before clenching her fists. "What can you tell me of element zero." Tevos knows Shepard is probably not wanting to part with information that could make her species look weak, so maybe she will have to tell the Human what is wrong.</p><p>"Hard to make." The Human replies as she moves to a sink to wash her hands, "But why does this matter?" Tevos can tell Shepard wants to be anywhere but here.</p><p>"Have you checked for eezo radiation?" Tevos says, "Your home solar system is one of the most barren places I've ever seen for the element, yet you measure off the charts for eezo contamination. Your fellow people also show signs of it." Tevos has lived long enough, and interacted with enough people of all different species to know when someone is confused or trying to hide something, so she goes on, "You are suffering from severe radiation sickness Shepard, and I would bet because you have none of it in your home system, you didn't even know." In actuality, Shepard isn't off the charts for eezo contamination, but Tevos simply needed to labour the point.</p><p>"We haven't come across the stuff in large enough quantities to..."</p><p>Tevos clenches her fists again, "You went through the Relay, which operates off element zero. You have been exposed for possibly the first time in human history." Tevos allows for a small pause before saying, "You want to keep the fact you don't know a secret, so why don't we trade them."</p><p>"What?"</p><p>"Secrets. You know I am a person of importance, yes?"</p><p>"Yes." Shepard replies, remembering back to the conversation in the elevator, "You mentioned you were a representative on some council."</p><p>"The council." Tevos iterates. "The council you are negotiating with, I am for all purposes out here, the Council." This information would inevitably be discovered in little time, so no harm is really given by revealing this information now. "I am the Council. Why do you think the Turians arrived with such a heavy fleet? A council member going down could cause a third of the Council to ready arms, which is not good for the other two."</p><p>"That gives me nothing," Shepard says with a shake of her head, "I already suspected,"</p><p>Tevos suppresses a small sigh of frustration, "You are trying to protect your species image, I understand, I really do, I must protect my own every single day. To you, we are still people who could invade your solar system, so you need to look powerful, but I am trying to help you. We already know you are powerful, but willful ignorance does not look good on you." Tevos allows a few moments for the words to be translated on her omni tool and then for them to sink in, and as she waits, she just hopes the Prothean translation was clear in her intent.</p><p>After looking torn, Shepard says, "Give me a moment," Before going on to make a call on their phone device. After a few minutes of chatting with someone on their phone, Shepard looks a little frustrated before putting it down. As she talked to her phone, Tevos called a medic with a medical-grade omni-tool to hang around out of sight, so that she could be available on a few moments notice. When the Human is finished talking to her phone, she looks to Tevos with some intrigue, "Alright, prove it."</p><p>With this, Tevos calls her medic into the toilet, and a few moments later, Shepard is looking at a scan of her body, something she isn't too happy with as her body contains some secrets, but the situation is what it is. "What you are looking at here..." The medic says as they point to her skeleton, "...Are eezo contaminants stuck to the metal and bone in your skeleton."</p><p>"How do you get rid of it?" Shepard asks bluntly.</p><p>The medic's response is almost immediate, "You can create an eezo bubble, which can repel it like an eezo core... or for an easier mental image, like a magnet. With the right kit, this can take a few minutes." In theory, all Shepard needs to do is be on a ship with an eezo core as it travels through a Relay, the eezo bubble created by the eezo core would repel any eezo contaminants in her body.</p><p>"How long would this take you to set up?" Asks Tevos.</p><p>The medic once more gives an immediate answer, "The kit is already set up. If you wanted, we could have this done in 15 minutes."</p><p>After another chat on her phone, Shepard nods, at the moment, the doctor on the Praetorian is fighting a losing battle to keep the crew alive, so any insight the Asari may have is welcome.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Batarian Space</p><p>Wrex watches Tela Vasair walk back and forth in the living compartment of their vessel with his beady red eyes, and eventually, he says, "You know, there are easier ways to wear the carpet out." The Asari looks at him for a second before scowling at the Battle Master. The raid to free Alena's daughter was far bloodier than expected, the raid to free her daughter went well, but as they were about to leave the wretched Batarian world, the Asari warlord left a parting gift for the Batarians. Checking the news a few hours after it 'went off', Wrex found that Alena had released a deadly nerve agent, with most of the city it went off in now suspected dead.</p><p>The Batarians understandably want blood and have locked down all Batarian space, meaning at the moment, their shuttle is stuck hiding deep in a crater on some random asteroid they found drifting through space. If the Batarians find them, Wrex knows that their fate will be worse than death, so he is prepared to go down fighting, and make a name for himself that way. Tela Vasair, however, has other issues, her alien that she is supposed to get to the Citadel Containment fleet is now stuck on her vessel, and Alena's last act has not only jeopardised her position as a Spectre on the Council but has also made her an accomplice in the death of what is probably a few hundred thousand people. Dealing with Alena has many advantages, but sometimes a deal with the devil is just that. Wrex continues to watch Vasair as she paces till he hears Alena curse in the cockpit of the shuttle, and from the sounds of things, the Batarians have found them.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. Even more problems.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Grothan Pazness sighs, it has been a long day of nothing, much like the weeks prior. At first, his current assignment seemed refreshing and exciting, after all, who in the right mind wouldn't want to be involved in a first contact situation? When the state of affairs was briefed to Grothan, he genuinely felt excitement, his vessel was going to be used for something grand, something more than a mindless patrol in dark corners of space, something that would go down in the pages of history. Grothan mentally admits that the first week or so did provide some excitement; first of all, his vessel was serving alongside a Turian dreadnought, and the pride of the Asari navy, that being the Destiny Ascension. While working alongside Asari vessels is uncommon but not unheard of, for a Batarian vessel to work with Turian fleet, that is a once in a lifetime event, a one he is making the most of. He is sure the Grand Admirals will have him write reports on how they operated, and every Batarian aspiring to become an officer in the grand Batarian Navy will have to read his accounts.</p><p>Grothan releases a happy noise at remembering the first tactical situation brief he received from the Containment fleet, he fondly remembers reading of the ships made from Relay Metal, the Ringworld, and the Turian frustration with the Humans stealth vessels. Back then, he honestly thought that the next few weeks would bring around a wind of change, and a new species would come gracefully sailing through the Relays, but since, he has learned that not all was as he hoped. So far, this operational tour has seen his vessel sat idle in space in front of the Human Relay, just waiting. The phrase, 'Hurry up and wait' comes to Grothan's mind. Grothan's first real affair with Human tech was when three small spheres came through the Relay, they obviously served a purpose, but what function they serve is to this day still unknown. He watched them for hours with some excitement, hoping that something would happen, but nothing did. Soon it came apparent he was not going to see anything worthy of excitement from the spheres, and with news the Relay was powering back up, his attention quickly returned to the Relay. His excitement with the situation soon turned to frustration as asteroids and space debris was tossed from the Relay. It was quickly deduced that the Humans were testing the Relay, and were either not a Relay capable species, or just super cautious, but most agreed with the former. This got Grothan thinking, why then, did the Citadel send such a powerful containment fleet? Did they omit important information in their tactical reports?</p><p>The worst part about the entire situation was that any time the Relay powered up, he had to treat it as if this was the time the Humans would come storming through, and he would have to fight their angry hoards back to the hellish space they call home. This wouldn't have been too bad if he wasn't required to be on the bridge every time the Relay powered up, but as he was needed on the bridge, he found getting some rest had become a challenge in its own as the Humans seemed to send a constant supply of asteroids through the Relay. Maybe, it was a way of tiring out his people, Grothan thinks in reflection. By his own doctrine, Grothan should have charged the Relay, as the Human's sending a constant supply of asteroids through could have been seen as aggression, however, for better or worse, the Turian Fleet Commander held his reigns, and had a tight grasp of them.</p><p>Eventually, Grothan remembers the day when the Human diplomatic vessel arrived, at first, four stealth vessels came through the Relay, and he can remember the moment they did their thing and cloaked, becoming invisible to his sensors. He never truly accepted the Turian reports that the Human vessels were all but undetectable when they cloaked, but he believed now, and what his people would do for that technology. Shortly after, the bruiser of a diplomatic vessel arrived with the Salarian vessel in tow, and Grothan can remember his confusion regarding the Human vessel, at first it was drifting before power was restored, and it was heavy, way too heavy for its small size. In addition to its extreme mass and lack of power, it was facing rearwards and towards the Relay, as if it was ready to run back to where it came from, at first, the Human vessel caused some head-scratching, with people wondering what they had planned. It was a sensors expert who managed to deduce why it was facing backwards, the Human vessel was not designed to fight the containment fleet, it was supposed to destroy the Relay if it was attacked. At first, Grothan laughed at the idea, did the Humans not know it was made of Relay metal and almost impossible to scratch never mind destroy? But then he remembered that their vessels were also made from Relay metal, so if anyone knows how to damage a Relay, it would be this species. With a small 'Humph' Grothan can remember showing his appreciation of the tactic. The species is mad, but they at least knew what they were doing. Turning his attention to the Salarian vessel, Grothan fondly remembers his pleasure, it was about time someone put the Salarians in their place for their snooping. This was the last of the excitement Grothan can remember, since, it has been nothing but scanning for their Stealth ships, a dull duty, but a one he will carry out all the same.</p><p>After retrieving a hot drink Grothan takes to sitting once more in his well-worn Captain's chair, and the second he moves to take a sip all the monitors in the room go dark, before quickly flicking to a deep red colour. Grothan quickly looks around his bridge and notices each monitor in the room now features an insect looking creature. Before Grothan can make any comments, the lights turn off, artificial gravity fails, and a sucking sound can be heard as the atmosphere is slowly sucked from the interior of the ship. As Grothan struggles to make sense of what direction is up and down, a voice speaks over his ships internal speakers, saying, "Assuming Direct Control."</p><p>/.../</p><p>20 Seconds later</p><p>Despite being pulled into the corner of the room which is far away from anyone else, Fleet Commander Quirinus looks around to make sure no one is listening in before asking, "Define 'erratically?'"</p><p>The Ascensions captain hands a datapad over to the Turian, "Over the last 15 minutes we have recorded random engine bursts ontop of some unexplained stabiliser and eezo activity." Eezo activity is often a precursor to an FTL jump.</p><p>"Have we tried hailing?" When travelling in a fleet, it is expected that ships may move slightly to avoid space debris or even to test and warm specific engines and motion control systems, however, unless an emergency, movements are broadcasted before any such activities are undertaken. Revealing one's actions relating to fleet movement is a Turian protocol, however, and Quirinus knows how well 'trained' a Batarian crew can be.</p><p>"Nothing in response," Irissa replies as she looks over to the Batarian fleet admiral who is talking to a Human on the other side of the room, "And they shut down all networking 15 minutes ago. We have tried light signalling and tight beam." When travelling in a fleet, one would not typically shut down networking unless they had a very good reason. If there has been some sort of catastrophic failure, which means networking is no longer available, then light signalling should still work. If all comms options have failed, then usually, the reason why isn't a good one.</p><p>"Something smells," Quirinus says as he too glances up from the datapad and to the Batarian Admiral. "It looks to me like it is about to surge forward." If the ship is warming its engines, then Quirinus knows that it will be able to reach the Relay in under 10 seconds, it will then take the vessel a further 15 seconds to enter Relay transit.</p><p>As Fleet Commander Quirinus moves to approach the Batarian Admiral a bright flash can be seen out of an observation window in the room followed by a second blinding flash. The light is so bright Quirinus is initially forced to raise a hand to cover his eyes. Lowering his hand from his eyes a few moments later Quirinus takes stock of the situation and realises that there has been some sort of mega explosion near the Relay which has produced enough light to make it appear like there is a small star out there. Fortunately for Quirinus and all those in the room, the windows on the Ascension automatically dim for bright light conditions, if they hadn't, Quirinus has no doubts all those in the room would be blind right now.</p><p>Despite still being dimmed, Quirinus can see what looks like a small dimming star next to the Relay, but he knows from experience it is anything but. At just over 300,000km away, Quirinus is looking at an explosion of horrific proportions, and he knows only a few weapons capable of producing such a terrible sight. With a dawn of realisation as to what has just happened, that being the Batarian ship steaming ahead and either running into a mine or being attacked by the Humans, Quirinus knows he has two options. His first option is to stay here in this room and try to pacify the Humans, that he has had little interaction with, or, he can sprint to a Command and Control Centre on the Ascension in wait for the inevitable conflict. With a quick decision made Quirinus grabs his Turian negotiator by the collar and delivers a simple yet straightforward instruction to pacify the Humans. While his negotiator works, Quirinus makes his way to a war room, to defend his people. Quirinus wishes for peace, but his duty is to his people first and foremost.</p><p>Getting into a Command and Control room on the Ascension Qiruinus looks around, while he may be surrounded by Asari, he knows that to serve on the Ascension, you need to be some of the best in the Asari navy, so they are no slouches or wet bags. In his ear, Quirinus has already connected to his Fleet Orchestrator, who is waiting for any commands he gives relating to fleet movements. He has no doubt his own crew are already getting geared for a battle. They are well drilled and know exactly what to do.</p><p>Looking at an Asari who is stood in front of a glass screen that highlights the local solar system, he barks a simple phrase, "Tactical Status." He doesn't need to ask what happened as he could make a strong, educated guess.</p><p>The Asari is quick to respond, "Fleet status unchanged, all but one vessel accounted for and fully operational. Batarian vessel destroyed, Human vessel Praetorian is glowing with what appears to be intent to shoot the Relay. We have a few reports of casualties, mostly eye damage from those who witnessed the explosion. We also momentarily discovered a further 53 unknown vessels. By all evidence, it would appear they are Human."</p><p>"Show me," Quirinus demands at learning his fleet may be outnumbered.</p><p>The Asari points to a few spots on her glass screen, "Observed stealth vessels are here, here, here and here." These are the known types of Human stealth vessels that occasionally decloak, "One unknown vessel here gave a series of warning shots in front of the Batarian vessel prior to the explosion. We have a detected a further 48 of unknown class here. They are spread out erratically."</p><p>Quirinus's mandibles flare wide, "How did we discover them?"</p><p>"The anti-matter explosion happened behind them, we just happened to capture shadows in the explosion before the sensors were overwhelmed. We have since lost their position."</p><p>Quirinus breathes out deeply as he stands upright, hands tucked neatly behind his back, "Estimated vessel types, sizes, and weight class?"</p><p>"Unknown. We only have very rough outlines."</p><p>Quirinus flares his mandibles again as he stalks around the room, he knows what his doctrines calls for, he is outnumbered at least 34-54, and those opposing his people are willing to deploy anti-matter weaponry. Quirinus knows he should request for the Primarch's chosen to send reinforcements, he also knows he should change fleet formation, his current formation is not suited to fighting off such a high number of stealth vessels, but should he? Quirinus knows that his next decision will be studied in Naval school for hundreds of years to come, right or wrong.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Alexei Shepard takes a deep breath, inhaling the clinically dry and clean air that his environment suit provides him. Like everyone else on his ship, he too hopes that he can hold off the radiation sickness for long enough so that he does not vomit inside his helmet. Cleaning a helmet full of vomit is not a fun job, and once the smell gets in, no matter what you do, the smell always seems to linger. On top of this, there is no atmosphere at the moment, so if he does vomit in his helmet, he is stuck with the vomit till the tactical situation allows the removal of his helmet. His mind, however, is quickly distracted from the results of vomiting in one's helmet.</p><p>"Atmosphere vented." Someone says, and from the voice emitted into his ear by his helmet, Shepard knows it belongs to the vessels second in command. "Weapons are primed, shields are charged. We are now battle capable." With this comment, Shepard presses a button on his console which allows other military assets in near proximity to know his vessel is now ready for conflict.</p><p>While Alexei's sister is a foot soldier serving in the Marines, Alexei's talent is away from the horrors of ground warfare and instead is focused in space, where he commands his own Stealth Vessel. This is not to say that space warfare lacks its own horrors, to the contrary, space warfare can be just as horrifying if not more so. The difference is that where the horror in ground warfare comes from enemy combatants, in space, the very environment you operate in comes with its own set of horrors and difficulties to contend with.</p><p>There are other differences too between the two siblings, the most prominent being while Alexei's older sister is a Mark 2 Augment serving with the Marines, he is a Mark 4 serving in the Navy, meaning his genetic makeup and augmentations are more suited to extended periods in space. Moving away from genetics, his sister is generally more grumpy and quick to violence, whereas he is more charismatic.</p><p>Looking at one of the many screens in front of him, Alexei analyses the situation before tapping on a screen, and an electronic order is sent to the vessel's primary helmsman, indicating where Alexi wants the vessel moved to. If the primary helmsman does not accept the order in short time, then the 2nd and 3rd helmsman will receive the order. In every human warship, there is redundant systems for redundant systems, this is to ensure that even with significant battle damage, a vessel is still mission capable. As the vessel moves to the designated location, Shepard asks a question into his helmet, "Ultron, what happened?"</p><p>The AI is quick to respond, "A vessel from the Citadel fleet attempted to use the Relay, it collided with my mines. I provided ample warning shots prior to mine detonation."</p><p>Alexei shakes his head at the thought of someone trying to rush the Relay; surely the Citadel forces would have completed a combat estimate and realised that his people would have set up a defensive perimeter around it? "Understood, are your platforms ready?"</p><p>"2 platforms have received superficial damage, one platform is recharging and will be combat-capable in 33 seconds. All others are prepared for 'delay' actions." Delay is used as a military term, meaning to slow an enemy advance, it is something Alexei understands well, his own orders are to delay the enemy, allowing the Praetorian to destroy the Relay. Once the Relay is destroyed, Alexei knows that his people will either be killed by the Citadel fleet or suffer a slow agonising death as they run out of food and breathable air. Of course, which fate he will suffer depends on the outcome of the battle.</p><p>"Captain," Another AI voice says, "The President is on line 4, talking with Captain Melchett."</p><p>"Figures," Alexei grumbles, knowing full well that Captain Melchett would rather be preparing his ship for conflict right now like himself, and not speaking with the President, "Put it on my monitor EDI."</p><p>Alexei initially watches the exchange of conversation, his initial thoughts are that the President looks to be dressed in a random assortment of clothes, but doing some quick maths Alexei figures that the President has been awoken in the middle of the night. The initial questions the President asks are to be expected, he wanted to know the who, the what, the why the when and the how. As Alexei listens in, he looks at what information he knows about the Turian fleet, and the information does not add up in his mind. The Turian vessels are not completely facing the Relay, and have what he would call a guarded but none aggressive stance. Many ships would have to move position to get a clear shot at the Relay, and none of them has their main armament facing the Praetorian. If he was going to do something stupid, like charge a vessel at the transport device, he would want at least a few ships aimed at the Praetorian in case of any nasty backlash.</p><p>Out of curiosity, Shepard looks at the two other vessels which are not apart of the Citadel fleet, the small stealth vessel, and the large prawn looking stealth vessel. On looking at recorded footage from the last 15 minutes, it would appear to Shepard like the small stealth vessel is acting more cautiously, whereas the large vessel extended its small 'legs' that decorate its hull. If this was a live creature, Shepard would think nothing of it; however, he has not yet seen the ship extend those little leg things; he, for the most part, believed they were decorative. "Ultron?" Shepard asks to the AI, "You are still shadowing this ship, correct?"</p><p>"Correct." The AI informs.</p><p>"What do you think would happen if you accidentally dropped the cloak on one of your drones?" If this was a Human vessel, and a random alien Stealth vessel dropped their stealth cloak next to a stealthed Human ship, then it would be quite a nasty surprise.</p><p>"Commander Shepard, I would not advise antagonising another species." This is the AI's polite way of saying 'no' to the Commander.</p><p>Eventually, after receiving orders, Captain Melchett hails the QEC box that was gifted to the QRF fleet above Earth. It takes a small while, but eventually, the Fleet Commander answers, "Captain Melchett," The Turian says when he accepts the hail, "That was a hell of a light show, are your men unharmed?"</p><p>/.../</p><p>Quirinus looks into the human holographic form in front of him as he tries to read the Human. As Quirinus waits for the Human to respond, he notices that the man is in an environment suit, and from reading his negotiator's reports from their visit to the Human vessel, he knows the Humans get into these suits when they expect a battle.</p><p>"A light show I wished I would never have to witness Fleet Commander." There is a small pause before the Human continues, "I have my orders to defend Human space, and we will see it through." There is a delay before the Human goes on to say, "But, I want to deescalate. For that to happen, I need to know why one of your vessels charged the transport device."</p><p>Quirinus must wait for his translation device to work, converting the Humans Prothean to Galactic before he can give his response, "I am glad you wish for no further escalation." In truth, Quirinus really is thankful, his last decision was to do nothing, and allow the Humans to make the next move, a one which would have cost him should the Humans reacted poorly. "As for why a Batarian ship charged the Relay, we are unsure; the vessel belonged to a Batarian admiral who is on this vessel, I have sent him to investigate why one of his ships decided to charge your space. You should rest assured, however, that the Batarians will be punished for their transgression." In truth, when the Primarch finds out, Quirinus can foresee some heavy sanctions, even the Asari are probably going to react poorly when they find out.</p><p>There is a pause before the Human Captain says, "Well, let us know when you find out. As for ourselves, you have seen what our mines can do, and you have lost a crew, which is never a good day, so I'm going to take a leap of faith. The rest of your vessels don't appear to be stood up, so I'm standing down my vessels." The Captain takes a small pause before going on to emphasise, "Just be aware, we will be watching."</p><p>When the call ends, Quirinus lets out a Turian sigh before sitting down in a chair, a disaster has been averted, and it would appear like he has made the right decision. After taking a deep breath to gather himself, he looks to an Asari, "Alert the Primarchs Chosen, I am expelling the remaining Batarian vessel, and let him know our current strategic and tactical situation. Have all recordings sent also." After a moment Quirinus stands up and begins to walk back to the celebration, hopefully, the negotiators are still on friendly terms, and he doesn't have a second battle brewing on one of his own vessels.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0019"><h2>19. A new job.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Shepard eyes the machine with equal amounts of hopeful curiosity and caution, she is about to let these aliens do something to her body, and she doesn't really understand what they are about to do. She knows that it is a recipe for disaster, these aliens know little about Human biology, so why would they know how her biology will react to this machine? In truth, she is only doing this out of desperation for a cure, the UNSC have no idea, or at least this is her opinion, but these Asari seem to sound like they know what they are talking about. In life, Shepard has realised that if you look confident, and sound confident, then you can fool a lot of people, she just hopes she isn't the one being deceived this time. "So, this is the machine?" She eventually asks.</p><p>The Asari doctor blinks as she does something on a terminal, after a moment to enter some information into the computer she replies, "Yes, this machine has been developed for those who have been exposed to extreme amounts of element zero. The problem is you have such a small amount in you." The translation is a little broken, but Shepard gets the idea. "This machine is designed to reduce the amount of eezo in a biological body down to 1 microgram per kg, but you are already at an estimated 0.25 micrograms per kilo; its settings need to be tweaked." Whether or not Shepard understands a gram to be the same weight that the Asari understand a gram to be is unclear.</p><p>"Is 1 microgram a lot?" Shepard asks with a noticeable, forced amount of curiosity. Despite feeling ill, and not particularly wanting to ask a bunch of questions, Shepard knows she needs to get as much information as she can to assist with her own doctors and scientists who are working on the mysterious radiation sickness.</p><p>It is Tevos who provides a response, "No, a standard Asari will have anywhere from 1-2 grams per kilo, and elite athletes can have anything up to 10 grams. Turians, Elcor, Hanar, Salarians, and Krogan, can all have up to 1 gram. Your species just seem to be very sensitive to the element." This knowledge is similar to how most humans know they have enough iron in their bodies to make a single nail.</p><p>After a few moments, the Asari medic gestures with her head towards the bed, "Lie down, the machine needs to take your biometrics." Then to Tevos, the Asari continues, "I would step back a metre, this is about to strip her of whatever eezo dust she has picked up. Not advisable for you or me."</p><p>Shepard perks her ears at the comment, "How so?"</p><p>"As mentioned," The doctor begins to speak, but she regularly pauses every so many spoken words as she enters information into her machines and computers, "A healthy Asari have 1-2 grams. Removing that eezo will make us anaemic." Shepard is sure that the translation for the final word is wrong, but she understands the intent, an Asari without eezo is not a healthy Asari.</p><p>Once Shepard is laid down, a machine lined up next to the bed begins to give off an ominous whirr as it powers up, it is the type of buzz that makes hairs stand on end. After listening to the machine's inauspicious drone for a few seconds, Shepard realises she needs to distract herself from it, "So, I was told you asked for me." The question is obviously aimed at Tevos.</p><p>"Yes, we did." Tevos is quick to reply from her position a few meters away, "I guess you want to know why?"</p><p>"Because you are sick of the suits?" Shepard tries. "Talking policy."</p><p>"I live and breath policy and law," Tevos comes back with before going on, "But that is loosely connected to why..." Tevos is interrupted as the lights in the room change tone to have an ever so slight but noticeable yellow hue to them, "...You. Please excuse me."</p><p>Finding Tevos's exit from the room strange, Shepard shakes her head slightly before turning attention to the medic. "So, how does this gizmo work?" The word gizmo does not translate, resulting in Shepard dumbing down her lexicon. The response she receives is an extensive ramble of words, some of them translate, and those that do fly above her head in understanding. She has a grasp of fundamental physics, above that of the average Human, but when you start talking about inducing some type of particle field and deep physics, things go past her.</p><p>After about ten minutes, the Councillor returns, and she looks moderately annoyed, prompting Shepard to say, "You have a face of thunder, nearly matches mine."</p><p>"Lightning does not..." Tevos starts with evident agitation in her voice, but she stops her self short, "A Human idiom; but yes, unruly Batarians and anti-matter weaponry will do that." Seeing a bucket of what must be human vomit nearby, and smelling it, Tevos looks to the doctor before asking, "How is it going?"</p><p>"The process is pretty much finished there now." The medic reveals before turning to Shepard, "You are going to have to use whatever techniques your people have for overcoming mass cellular damage. We have played our part. I would advise getting this sorted sooner rather than later, but I am sure you are already well aware."</p><p>"Yeah, leave that to us," Shepard grumbles as she stands from the medical bed, "Plenty of experience in that."</p><p>Tevos does not like what this statement implies, but she has had enough bad news today, so instead, she asks, "Are you going to be well enough to reattend the party?"</p><p>"Is that still going ahead?" Shepard asks? A small hope in the augment says that no, it isn't, this is because she is still feeling ill, the doctor may have removed the Eezo, but her body is still damaged and feeling its effects.</p><p>Tevos is confused, does the Human think the party was only for half an hour, or does she believe time has passed far quicker than it has? "Yes. It has only been a short time."</p><p>"Even with our fleets being at odd ends?" Shepard speaks. "Would be strange to continue celebrating."</p><p>Tevos looks to the medic, "Did you tell her?" The physician seems visibly confused, so Tevos clenches her fists a little before saying, "I don't know how you know that, but yes, your fleet is standing down, and ours never stood up to stand down. Both of our people intend to enact the ceasefire as if nothing happened. Anyway, we should go."</p><p>"Hmm." Shepard retorts as she steps in line with the Asari Councillor. "So, you never did tell me why you asked for me."</p><p>"Then let me enlighten you," Tevos begins, "You were the Human to make first contact with Captain Corvinus, and you did so peacefully, then you provided security on your world, before visiting this ship as a 'friendly face'. Now images and videos of you have been broadcasted to our people to familiarise them with Humans, so your image, whether you like it or not, is coming associated within Council Space as Human. You are proving to be a familiar and reliable figurehead."</p><p>"So because I'm familiar, and reliable for whatever that means, you want me here?"</p><p>It turns out that after returning to the party, Tevos wanted Shepard in attendance so that she could receive a gift from the Council to Humanity for rescuing the Avian's crew above their world. The gift was a medium-sized oil painting depicting Shepard and team on the CV Avian giving Captain Corvinus his choice of rescue, all in all, for Shepard it was seen as a publicity stunt for the Council. In Human space, the Council are seen to be acknowledging Human efforts to save their people, it makes them look like people who appreciate the assisting hand, and are willing to recognise that. In Council space, it makes the Council look humble, they are willing to admit that they would have lost people without Humanity, and it shows that they are trying to bring them into the fold peacefully, which may rest some concerns regarding this new species. By the end of the party, Shepard was more than ready to return to her ship and find out if the Asari treatment worked.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Two days later, the Councillor finds Shepard on the Praetorian, where the Augment is sprawled out on a camp cot that is frankly too small for her lumbering size. "You should have informed us." The Asari says, causing Shepard to remove an arm that is covering her face and open her eyes.</p><p>"About?" There should be no illusions, Shepard is still ill, recovering from mass cellular damage takes more than a few days, even with modern miracle medicines and designed genetics. Still, she is in a far better place than the days prior. When she returned to the Praetorian, the medical crew seemed to perform every known test on her, and their evaluation was that whatever the Asari did, it had removed whatever was causing the continual and lethal radiation damage. The medicines they are giving her are now repairing the damage, and not slowing down the inevitable and depressing march to death.</p><p>Tevos gestures around, on the current deck, several dozen people are laying on cots, many are in dire conditions, some are on their death beds. "There is no advantage to struggling alone." After the second day of seeing Shepard recover, the Praetorian and advising scientists admitted they needed the Asari to help their people, or they were going to have mass casualties, and so a formal request was made. The Council first contact team, expecting this, already had a deployable medical section on standby, meaning it did not take long for medicinal assistance to arrive on the Praetorian. Many people do not realise how big the Council First Contact teams are, on the Ascension, there are more than one thousand people dedicated to the job, all enabling First Contact to go ahead, and in Council space, more than 50 thousand council employees are going over data and sending up analysis of the new species, and in the private sector, there is an unknown amount of people working on it too. On top of the 50,000, each individual species will have their own experts giving their own evaluation and analysis, working out what this species can give their own, and where the best trade opportunity lies.</p><p>Everything you could think of is analysed, from the clothes worn to the fondness of stealth vessels. The result of this is that medical teams dedicated to first Contact were quick to realise what would probably happen after Shepard's treatment, and formulated a plan to help the Praetorian, what they could not plan for was how many people they needed to help. Human Stealth technology made predicting this number next to impossible, so they set an approximate number in stone and went with it, planning the logistics, and everything else attached.</p><p>What this also confirmed to the Council is that this species is not yet FTL capable, or Relay capable, which also has intriguing weights attached. From the military perspective, any advance into the solar system protected by the Praetorian and its small stealth fleet would be against a fanatical force, they had everything to lose. This would also not be a war against a foe which favours traditional manoeuvre warfare, for they have no room to move, but who will go for stealth attacks and unconventional guerilla warfare. Combined, this leaves the Primarch's Chosen the difficult task of planning a war against a foe they never anticipated should they need to conduct pacification operations. This news also asked a question, how could a species with no FTL have certain advanced technologies the Citadel could only dream of? Many bets were hedged on some lucrative Prothean cache and some who could only see profits wanted to take it. And why not? With only one system, the Humans would have limited resources, yes, blood would be spilt, but the sacrifice of the few would be for the benefit of the greater good.</p><p>Tevos, however, knew better, the Humans may not have FTL, and to measure their technological advances off of this single development would be foolish. Already the Batarians have lost blood for trying to surge forward and through their Relay, at the hands of horrific weaponry, and from paintings witnessed, the Humans like things that cause big bangs. No, for Tevos and her understanding of the situation it would take the sacrifice of the many, to benefit the many, and that is not something she is willing to permit.</p><p>There are many other fallouts of course from this single confirmation of discovery, such as what economic influence and resource impact the species would have on the intergalactic market. Truth be told, for the Council the news was positive in this regard, stock markets made a significant comeback, no longer was there a threat of significant proportions. These Humans could have a superweapon that ends solar systems, but they have no means of deploying such a weapon, the Council could handle them, and certain financial investments became safe again. In the diplomatic sphere, efforts change from pacifying the species to initiating events into motion that will allow for access to Prothean cache's. It is curious, Tevos must think, how such a little bit of information can have such an enormous impact on wider galactic affairs. Tevos is dragged back to reality as Shepard replies, saying, "I'm just a grunt."</p><p>"A what?" Tevos has to ask.</p><p>"A jarhead." The expression is still lost; idioms are some of the hardest things to understand in a language, and it will take years to understand them. "Just a soldier. Informing is above my pay grade."</p><p>Tevos raises a brow as a question comes to her, "Did you inform regarding my status?" The fact she arrived on this vessel with no one stopping or greeting her is curious.</p><p>Shepard shakes her head, something Tevos and the first contact teams have come to realise means 'no' for Humans, as she points to a corner on the deck, "I've been too busy throwing my guts up over there." In truth, Shepard informed her higher chain of command; however, their current plan is to not act on this information in a public manner until the Councilor makes an official statement to Humanity's first contact team of her societal status. An argument could be made that this has already happened, but the higher echelons wanted an official statement made through official channels, no doubt for some political reason or for some other plan they have, or maybe they just don't believe she is who she claims to be. Shepard herself is to continue on as per usual and see what else she can learn, and maybe try to foster some sort of friendship, her orders were vague in this regard.</p><p>Tevos clenches her fists, her own species of saying 'no' or disagreeing without speaking "Now why wouldn't you tell?" Of course, this conversation takes place with the difficulties of half hashed translation.</p><p>Shepard fakes a shrug as she sits up on her bed and swings her legs over the side, "You did me, and them a favour," 'Them' obviously refers to the others on the camp cots. "So I've done you a favour. Why are you here?"</p><p>Tevos takes a moment before sitting down on the cot next to Shepard, "Accordingly? Career, honestly, interest. Most people in my position dream of seeing a First Contact with a species like your own. You have Relay Metal, and other advanced technologies, and it is something that has profound consequences on the galaxy and makes careers. Yet, instead of overseeing from a desk on the Citadel like my peers, my interests align with living it."</p><p>Shepard grunts a little as a thought hits her, "Being in a position of power ain't all that it is built up to be is it? When I was of other ranks, my job was bashing down doors, doing room clearance and facing the opposition head-on. I had a great time, and I was quite good at it. Now, with rank, I command from what is a relative distance and miss the fun stuff. Telling someone to bash down a door is not as fun as bashing down that door." Granted, bashing down a door, and not knowing what or who you will face on the far side is a terrifying thought, that moment of seeing the light turn to dark, and waiting for your eyes to adjust so you can do your thing can feel like a lifetime of horror, it is enough time someone can end you. It is, however, a horror that people can get addicted to, the adrenalin rush is like nothing you can artificially experience. Going skydiving you know you have a parachute, with a secondary reserve cord, bashing down doors is knowing someone wants to shoot at you, you just don't know where, when or how, and you don't have a reserve chord to save your behind.</p><p>"But you did do first contact." Tevos counters.</p><p>Shepard shrugs, "Alright, of my last few hundred assignments, I've had one or two good jobs, of which landing on some alien ship was one of them. The scales seem very one-sided still."</p><p>Tevos raises a brow as she asks, "No. I would say you have had a few good jobs lately, wouldn't you?"</p><p>"I suppose." Shepard initially replies, knowing she is fighting a futile battle, in truth, she is chuffed to smithereens she got this assignment, no other assignment will ever be able to compare, and an operational medal is all but assured, not that she medal chases but operational medals are far and few between these days. "So, now you are here, what is your job?"</p><p>"Officially? Talking," Tevos says, "I am to find out all I can, with an emphasis on Human culture."</p><p>"And if we recognised you as a species representative on your landing?"</p><p>"Then," Tevos begins to reply, "Acknowledge that it is the Council sending aid, and not one individual species despite all of the medical section and equipment being Asari, which it is." Tevos may be a Councillor, who is supposed to represent all of the Council, but she is still Asari and a patriot who wants to see her people flourish.</p><p>"Okay," Shepard tells Tevos before adding, "Please excuse me for one moment." The soldier stands and moves to a corner of the room where she is violently sick, projecting dark red vomit. On her return, Shepard asks, "So, what is next. We have a ceasefire, so maybe a peace deal?"</p><p>Tevos begins to laugh, and it is the type that one could identify as a 'belly laugh'. After a while, Tevos says, "I'm sorry, I do not mean to offend. It humours me greatly how you jump from ceasefire to a peace deal, you have missed a few big steps to get there."</p><p>Shepard has a blank gaze at this comment, "So, as a simpleton jarhead, what is next?"</p><p>"Establishing a means of mutual understanding." Tevos begins, "We have already started with a fundamental understanding for the ceasefire, but for a peace treaty, we need to understand more than what simple military terms mean, we need to understand each other culturally. You need to be aware that a peace deal can take decades if not longer to reach, anything less is a fantasy or a rushed deal which will collapse with the first scent of trouble. First Contact is not a fast process, it is slow, painfully slow."</p><p>"It can't be that bad?"</p><p>Tevos clenches her fists, "No, it can be much worse. We had a species which we tried to rush, and because of our impatience, we lost an entire contact team, entirely because they failed to take this step with enough gravity. Now we need to understand you as a people before we can think of peace. It is a process we have already started through our limited interactions, but now things need to start speeding up, and things need to begin happening."</p><p>"So," This begs the simple question, "How do we do that?"</p><p>"Ideally exposure," Tevos replies, "You send teams to live in Council space, and we send teams to live on your worlds. As we live in each other's cultures and societies, we will learn what it is to be a Human civilian or a Council civilian, and we will naturally find where frictions will occur. This information can then be analysed by first contact teams who will then use this information to tune any agreements between ourselves and highlight any issues."</p><p>"Do you get many issues during this phase?"</p><p>"Yes." Tevos tells, "But this is a good thing, as it highlights issues in a safe environment, allowing us to deal with it. An example within our own Council is that all of our individual species are administered by our own politics, and we all have a different idea of what a normal society is, and how a government should work. For example, Batarians have a strict cast system, my own species have the Matriarchs, and the Turians have a fanatic loyalty to their Primarchs. There are certain aspects of all three of our cultures that do not mix and even cause significant tensions between our domains, but by having an understanding of their culture, we have been able to manage the differences and prevent conflict. Could all of this information be gained through talks? Yes, but would we understand it without living it? Not always. By identifying it early, and understanding it by living it, we can react appropriately."</p><p>"Hmph," Shepard breaths out, "So, what other types of things get highlighted?"</p><p>"Well, it is at this stage you find out the dark parts of the different societies, the stuff that you don't want to talk about too much. Maybe you find our legal punishments are barbaric and need to implement a set of rules regarding criminal deportations, or perhaps we find your species enjoy constructing weapons of mass destruction, and we need to try and mitigate. There are more topics than you could imagine we will look for, as I imagine your species will think of and actively pursue with an investigation. But I am not suggesting we have a barbaric legal system or you own weapons of mass destruction, this is just for explanatory purposes."</p><p>"Yeah, I got the idea you were using examples. So to summarise, this is where we find all the skeletons in each other's closets. Gotchya." The word skeleton does not translate, nor does 'gotchya', and the saying needs to be elaborated on. Many of the long sentences spoken have similar issues.</p><p>Over the next few days, everyone from the Human side is treated for eezo exposure, with a few people requiring two or even three sessions of Asari treatment. The outcome from this was that it was determined that there were only 4 of the known Stealth vessels, as each of the Stealth vessels docked one after another so their crews could receive treatment. Curiously, not a single unknown stealth vessel docked with the Praetorian, which caused a few to question if the constructs were unmanned. After everyone was treated, a small team of Asari stayed behind on the Praetorian to help the Humans develop their own device to cure the Eezo radiation.</p><p>Eventually, a week to the day that the last person was 'cured' of their radiation poisoning, the Human's got busy. At first, they started to broadcast a set of light signals via a high-intensity laser to two set points in space, and following each laser signal the reason for why came clear. Following the path of the lasers, the Citadel forces discover a small Geth stealth ship, and a far larger unknown vessel that the Humans had previously shown them. The two vessels would not receive the light signals for another two days, and their response would take two days to travel back via light. Quirinus, of course, is concerned, not only can his fleet not detect the Human stealth vessels, but now he has had it proven the Geth and some unknown race can operate relatively right next to his fleet, and he would never know. By a citadel decree, Quirinus knows he should be arming up to tackle the Geth vessel, but under his own analysis of the situation and reassurance from Tevos and the Primarch's Chosen, his urge to chase the Geth were dispirited. If the Humans were trying to make contact with them, and the Citadel forces actively attacked the Geth, it would look terrible on his people. In addition, the Humans being able to detect the stealth vessels just reinforced to Quirinus that their Stealth detection technology is leaps and bounds ahead of his own navy, and serious resources will need to be spent to catch up.</p><p>Later on, the Human's invited the Citadel negotiators back to their vessel to try and negotiate the next part of organising peace between their people, in which the Citadel diplomats informed of their plan to invite people back to their worlds. The Humans were keen on such an idea, however, as with anything first contact related, the process is not as easy as a verbal agreement, and pen needed to be put to paper, and agreements need to be made. Who is allowed? How long? Who pays? What is allowed? Many questions need answers, including who will transport Humans to citadel worlds? The Humans still need to admit if they have FTL or not. The Humans meanwhile wanted to establish what space is theirs, and lay claim to space immediately surrounding the Relay as their sovereign space so that they could start the process of building defences outside of their home system.</p><p>On the same day, the Human Relay powered up once more, and a large ship sailed through from Human space. The vessel is not a military vessel by any means, the ship lacks armour, weapons, and a crew that were trained in naval tactics. Instead, the ship features a wafer-thin hull made of a titanium composite and a large observation deck that features a glass window 200 meters long by 100 meters wide. The vessels only self-defence capabilities come in the form of a shield that is to deflect space debris, not superheated tungsten rounds fired from a cannon. The ship's purpose quickly comes clear when its appearance is enlarged, and you can see all its features. Instead of sending another warship, the Humans had sent a km long 'cruise' ship. Unlike the Praetorian, the vessel is incredibly light in comparison, with the heaviest part being a large room with a thick lead-lined set of walls to protect the crew from eezo radiation when transiting the Relay.</p><p>The purpose of the ship is clear, the Humans obviously don't want to invite a war fleet back to their home system, so they brought a little of their home system to this part of the galaxy. Half a day after the ship arrived and its crew checked in with the Asari team on the Praetorian to check for eezo sickness, the cruise ship placed itself halfway between the Citadel forces and the Praetorian before an invite was sent to the Council forces.</p><p>Onboard the cruise ship, the first contact teams found a vast variety of entertainment types, they found bars, restaurants, night clubs, casinos, sports halls, an artificial beach, saunas, theatres, gardens, a 0g deck and even a small petting zoo. Truth be told, there is something for every species to enjoy onboard, and it is obvious the Humans had gone to some effort to make the vessel as friendly to ET visitors as possible. To provide further Human interaction, crews from the various Human ships in the system were allowed to visit on a rota, so that at any time, they still had some fully manned ships that could do their job at peak efficiency. At first, everything on the ship ran smoothly as the various crews that mixed on the vessel interacted well. Sure, at first there was a bit of groupthink with people wanting to stay interacting with their own species, but throw in some alcohol, and things quickly change. Of course, it is during this phase that certain curiosities are peaked. When you throw in soldiers and serving personnel with a species which have always filled that 'green space babe role', then sexual interests are peaked too, and certain physiological features of different species are discovered.</p><p>Not everything goes smoothly though when you offer free alcohol, many will abuse this offer, and a few scuffles are reported, mostly due to drunken arguments, and a few Turians have medical reactions to food served on the ship. Some capabilities of Asari 'space magic' is discovered, as is Turian hatred of deep water, and the Salarians can't be dragged from the sauna's where they have taken a particular liking to consuming tea, hot chocolate and coffee, resulting in the saunas running 24/7. Apparently tea and coffee is very similar to a Salarian 'mud water'. By the end of day two of the cruise ship's attendance, it is affectionately known as the 'party boat' from all sides.</p><p>Two days later.</p><p>Shepard does not turn to look at her biological sibling as says, "Blue 6 is about to be knocked out." Sure enough, a few seconds later, blue competitor 6 is hit by a paintball and is eliminated from the competitive 0g capture the flag game. The 0g sports hall in front of them has been set up so that two or three teams can compete in a game of 0g paintball, with the end goal being to capture a flag in the centre of the hall.</p><p>The younger Shepard does not acknowledge the older Shepards statement; instead, he simply says, "I've received my next AO." AO being short for Assignment Order.</p><p>"Good or bad?" The older Shepard asks between mouthfuls of a rather high-quality chicken kebab she got from one of the cruise ships food halls.</p><p>"I'm not sure. What do you make of this." The younger Shepard produces their phone from their pocket and hands it over with the screen showing an assignment order. The assignment order has Alexei reporting to an R&amp;D division of the UNSC, but neither Shepard has heard of the department before, which is unusual given their time served.</p><p>"Have you spoken to anyone about it?"</p><p>"Yes." The naval Shepard responds, "I had a chat with Hackett. Without spilling too many details, apparently, whatever it is, it will beat my current assignment. I will be reporting directly to my old CO, Anderson."</p><p>This causes the sister to raise a brow, she is not naval, but even she knows commanding a Stealth Destroyer is one of the most chased after jobs for Naval officers. The stealth destroyers are often engaged on the most missions and have the most sophisticated technology deployed; if you wanted action, you wanted to be on a Stealth Destroyer. "Well, sounds like you are going to be doing some sneaky beaky stuff. Were you even supposed to tell me?"</p><p>The brother shrugs, "Don't know, don't really care." The siblings usually keep some things to themselves, but given their roles, both have a high level of security clearance and can be trusted with information. "Besides, you would have figured it out."</p><p>"Probably. Red 2 is about to be eliminated." Sure enough, red 2 is removed from the game. "Do you know who will be replacing you?"</p><p>"No idea yet. Anyway, looks like you've got company. I'll have a catch up in a bit."</p><p>The older Shepard watches her sibling wander over to a few Asari who are nearby before turning her attention back to the game in front of her and saying, "Red 2 is about to be eliminated." When the Asari councillor is stood by her side.</p><p>Sure enough, red competitor 2 is eliminated from the game in short order, prompting Tevos to say, "Good observation. You are looking a lot healthier than a few days ago."</p><p>"Yeah, this ship brought with it a bunch of nano-bots and a few experts who know everything about radiation treatment." Shepard takes another bite from her kebab before saying, "And trust me, its good to be back on my feet."</p><p>"Yes, one can easily imagine. I also have heard you put up quite a performance yourself in this earlier." It is easy to see that the Asari use of 'this' refers to the 0g paintballing currently ongoing.</p><p>"That is my job." Shepard replies simply as she gestures to the 0g hall with her head, "Would be disappointing if I didn't." Seeing an Asari camera crew nearby, Shepard is prompted into asking, "How is your media work going?"</p><p>"It is going." The answer does not sound enthusiastic, even through the half hashed translation, "I have done multiple takes now of multiple topics."</p><p>"Hmm," Shepard grunts, knowing how laborious media can be, Shepard herself has had to do it a few times in the past for various operations she has been on that has held public interest. "How are the talks going then?"</p><p>"Smoothly, and it is what I've come to talk to you about."</p><p>"It is?" Shepard asks with a raised brow before taking another bite from her kebab.</p><p>"We want you for the civilian exchange program." Tevos ousts.</p><p>Shepard has a small chuckle before saying, "You will be lucky. My superiors will never sign it off." She knows too much and has the experience that the armed forces need right now.</p><p>"They already have," Tevos reveals, "You are going to be given the role of looking into our military history from the Citadel, while also adjusting to being a guest on the citadel itself."</p><p>Shepard turns her head to look at the Councillor, "Sending an augment to do such a job is deranged."</p><p>Tevos tilts her head slightly at the comment, "To the contrary, you are experienced in conflict, and will be far more suited to the role than a civilian who does not understand the complexities or requirements of operations. We will be sending someone to your worlds who also has military experience to make a similar assessment." In other words, a Spectre will be sent. If the Spectre is ever discovered, the Council can claim that they did a one for one exchange with the Human augment.</p><p>Shepard shakes her head a little at the thought before asking, "What else will be required of me."</p><p>"Some media work." Tevos says, "Mostly for your own people, so they can see what my people consider as entertainment, food and so on."</p><p>Shepard breaths out a deep breath before nodding, "Well, if that is what my assignment order says. When am I expected to be leaving?"</p><p>"A weeks time. As much as I would love to stay out here, I must return to the Citadel so it would make sense to transport the people your government has selected to go to Council worlds with me then. Also, what is that you are consuming?"</p><p>Shepard looks down to her half-eaten chicken kebab, "A chicken kebab with mint sauce? It is probably one of the better ones I've had in a while. Want some?"</p><p>"I would much prefer if you could show me where to get some."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0020"><h2>20. First Contact No.2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"So," Shepard articulates as she takes a seat at an enclosed booth, "What happens in the next week?" She needs to know for a few reasons, but most importantly, she wants to know what she needs to do before her supposed departure date for alien space. In the short time that she has been informed of her impending departure for citadel space, she has already compiled a list of things to do. Some tasks are simple such as getting commodities she doubts she will be able to buy, such as hygiene products, but other tasks will be more troublesome such as handing back issued military kit to the QM department on the Praetorian. In truth, she does not want to hand back her armour, it has taken her years to get it customised to how she likes it.</p><p>"We need to make sure you are safe," Tevos responds as she unwraps the thin paper around her lamb kebab. As it turns out, Chicken is not easily digested by Asari due to having traits of levotration, whereas Lamb, being more Dextro, is easily absorbed. "You will inevitably have billions if not trillions of types of microbes on you, and in you, that we need to discern are safe or not. So we will need our medical experts to examine you. At the same time, you will want to check in with your own physicians; to make sure your immune system is at strength, and you have no unforeseen medical issues that may arise." The truth is, Shepard's immune system will have been compromised due to the recent radiation poisoning, however, if any alien bacteria passes her nanobot reinforced immune system, then there is little that would stop it. "We also need to make sure that the atmosphere we are breathing is safe, and will be safe for you. There is a lot we need to verify before this can happen."</p><p>Most of the Citadel civilians themselves also have access to highly sophisticated immune system aids; however, only a small percentage have installed technology similar to Shepard. The same can be said for most humans, while they have access to advanced tech, not all have it.</p><p>"This all sounds charming," Shepard muses.</p><p>"Yes. Many people think first contact is fun and games, but it is not. May I ask, what did you think was going to happen when your species discovered my own?"</p><p>"Honestly?" Shepard says before elaborating, "I had no idea. I just wanted you out of our home... system." The Augment is momentarily wide-eyed at admitting that the system one relay across is their home system. She tries to elaborate and clear up the translation as a mistake, but if anything, this just makes it more evident.</p><p>Tevos takes this opportunity to say, "We know. No species that has FTL would be so unknowledgeable about Eezo radiation, it is akin to flying faster and not realising wind resistance becomes a thing. I do wonder why you are so protective of this, though, it is not something to be embarrassed about. We have all started somewhere."</p><p>"Not that I am admitting anything, but wouldn't you be wary?" Shepard asks as Tevos takes her first bite of the lamb kebab, "To know someone with FTL can reach your home location, and you can do nothing about it? To me, that is a terrifying thought. Throughout Human history, we have often had the ideology that if someone can reach us before we reach them, then it will be a repeat of Christopher Columbus." Shepard spends a few minutes trying to explain the Columbus idea, that Humanity would be the Native Americans who are crushed under an empire with technology far beyond human comprehension.</p><p>Tevos takes a while to respond as she finishes chewing her bite from the kebab wrap. "I'm sorry, that is good, but yes, I appreciate your fears. No doubt you would fear we have the resources of a galaxy, and a fleet so large we could darken the skies of a thousand worlds."</p><p>"You aren't helping," Shepard half-jokes. "But seriously, you are not helping, please tell me you don't have a fleet that large."</p><p>"We do not have a fleet so large we could darken your skies. The Turians might protest otherwise, but it is inherently untrue."</p><p>"But now," Shepard remarks, "You could just be saying that."</p><p>Tevos raises a hand to cover her face, "Please stop being insufferable. Yes, we have fleets, but the Citadel collective do not raid planets, especially of those who are being agreeable. Our fleets are designed mostly for defensive purposes as opposed to high-stress expeditionary warfare. Although it is massively off-topic, we have strict rules on interstellar warfare, of which, darkening one's skies is an immediate contradiction against the rules of armed conflict. It would invoke Citadel sanctions against the perpetrator, and there would be good arguments for sending in peacekeeping fleets." This is a partial truth, if you were to scrutinise the fleets that protect the Citadel and many other homeworlds, then this is true, they are not designed for waging war away from their guard. Where this becomes false is if you were to look at a Turian 'peacekeeping' fleet, it is entirely designed for expeditionary warfare, such as that used by Quirinus. Due to the high number of worlds, though, it is an accurate statement to say that most fleets are designed for defence and not offence.</p><p>"Hmm," Shepard hums, "If you say so. So, when I get to this Citadel, what then?" Shepard is still not convinced that the Citadel does not have fleets that could darken the skies of Earth.</p><p>"Still being decided." Tevos says as she takes a sip of some pink coloured drink, "What is this?" She points to the drink.</p><p>"Strawberry milkshake."</p><p>"Hmm, you will sell this by the cargo vessel." Tevos reveals before putting the paper cup down, "But once you are on the Citadel, you will be invited to join an Asari estate, so you can experience an Asari lifestyle while you fulfil your role."</p><p>"An Asari estate?" Shepard questions.</p><p>"Most Asari Matriarchs own an estate, where they have followers, and families living under them. An estate is being prepared so you can join. They will provide accommodation, protection, food, advice and social aspects for your stay. A high percentage of Asari belong to an estate, so it is, therefore, logical that you would join an estate to gain an understanding."</p><p>"So what is the purpose of an estate?" Asks Shepard.</p><p>Tevos waits till she swallows a rather large bite before responding, "An easy way for an Asari to gain influence among the Matriarch's Council is to establish an estate. This estate provides direction to the younger Asari, as well as financial support and societal support. The only request of an Asari joining an estate is loyalty to the Matriarch, and reverence for their fellow estate members."</p><p>Shepard thinks on this for a minute before shrugging, "I still do not understand,"</p><p>"Okay," Tevos begins once she swallows another bite of the lamb kebab, "So, I have an estate, totalling 1,178 people. I run my estate well, and it is financially prosperous. Any with problems, medical or whatever other problem you can think of, is dealt with in house and cared for. I care for my estate well, which allows others to think that if I can care for my estate, I can care for more. This provided me with a stepping stone into the High Matriarch's inner circle, and eventually was the very base layer of my campaign for Councillor. It is a simple way of proving capability, and for myself setting up a support network for when I grow old. I will depend on my estate to care for my family and me."</p><p>"Okay, so I think I'm getting it," Shepard says before stopping to look at her hand that has started to twitch uncontrollably. With a hard slam off the table the twitching stops. Tevos can tell Shepard is frustrated with the hand from just a swift glance, but what seals her frustration is the mumbling in her native tongue. Tevos considers asking about the twitch, but quickly decides against it, knowing that inquiring about medical issues can be seen as intrusive and insensitive. Eventually, when her hands stop twitching, Shepard looks back up to the Councillor to ask, "So, if you are a Matriarch, how old are you?" Before Tevos can provide a number, there is some conversation to try and establish how long 1 Prothean year is. After a general agreement is made on 1 Prothean year, Tevos reveals that she is actually 692 Earth years old.</p><p>"And here I thought being 5 hundred and odd was old," Shepard admits. In truth, Shepard no longer celebrates or tracks her birthdays, and now must do some mental maths to work out how old she is. She also does not know her true life expectancy, whatever Ceberus did when they created her, they had their hand in some advanced research that is classified to even herself.</p><p>"What is the average age for your species?" Tevos asks.</p><p>"150 on a good day," Shepard admits. "We banned most genetic engineering to stop agelessness a good while ago. Overpopulation is a real thing on ever smaller worlds. How old does' your people get?"</p><p>"From our calculations, 1106 of your years." Tevos says, "You are mid-aged to us, and if you were Asari you would be thinking of establishing an estate for yourself."</p><p>"Oh boy, when you say it like that, you are making me feel both old and young simultaneously."</p><p>"Yes. So, I have a question for you." Tevos says.</p><p>"Shoot."</p><p>"If you only had 2 more hours on this vessel, what would you do?"</p><p>Shepard breaths out a little at this request once she understands that Tevos has 2 more human hours on board. The party boat has entertainment of all kinds on board, a person could spend a year here and still be trying all the different types of entertainment, so what on earth should she show the potential leader of an alien civilisation? If you wanted to sell Humanity on one of our types of entertainment, what would you choose? "What have you seen already?"</p><p>"The aquarium, the kitten and puppy petting zoo, and the 0g hall."</p><p>"Alright," Shepard initially responds, "So you haven't tried the holo-suites?"</p><p>Tevos clenches her fists, "No, not yet."</p><p>"Then are you in for a treat."</p><p>The holo-suites are all booked out when Shepard and Tevos arrive, however as Shepard is deemed to be more important than random sailors of the Human navy for her role in first contact, she is able to quickly get into one of the halls. "So in this hall you can do anything," Shepard announces once she is in, "These halls are some of the most popular entertainment devices in Human space. If you fancy being a mad dictator for the day, or a farmer defending a zombie apocalypse, then this is the place to do it, there are thousands upon thousands of choices to choose from." The Halls can also be used to tell next generation stories, where you partake as the main character and make the decisions. Powerful computers than compute your decisions, and craft worlds around that, so that each individual story is unique to your choices and character.</p><p>Eventually, almost 100 minutes later Shepard dodges a glove thrown at her by Tevos as the Asari proclaims frustration at finding out Shepard is the imposter. "Well," Shepard laughs, "Are you converted to the holo-suites."</p><p>"Yes." Tevos confirms, "These will sell well in Citadel space... But I still can't believe you tricked me for the whole game. We will have to play this again some time."</p><p>Shepard shrugs, "And that is why this game is so addictive."</p><p>"Hmm," Tevos hums before looking to her clock, and at realising the time she looks back to Shepard, "Anyway, I must be going, I have work that needs attending to."</p><p>"Sure," Shepard replies, knowing that not everyone has a timetable as free as her own, "But if you ever want a rematch, I'm not due to be back on this vessel for another 3 days."</p><p>After doing some back and forth, the two are able to figure out when exactly Shepard is due back on the vessel, to which Tevos informs Shepard she will see her then.</p><p>/.../</p><p>With great curiosity, the Primarch's Chosen looks at a grey scaled image. The image depicts 'hard' and dense points in a Human that the Asari have scanned. At first, one would not notice too much amiss, bone and soft tissue, but with a few seconds to appreciate the image, one notices the more in-depth detail. The metal reinforced skeleton and pebble dash of metalwork throughout the body should cause concern, but at the moment, his attention is dragged elsewhere. "So, the Batarians have declared a state of emergency?"</p><p>"Yes." An advisor to PC speaks, "Their planet was attacked with a dirty bomb."</p><p>"So their planet was attacked with a dirty bomb, then they charge the Human relay? Something doesn't add up." Batarians are brash, unruly, and mad even, but they are not out of mind. Truth be told, they are very good at calculating risk verse reward, maybe they are even better than the Volus, so just charging a Human Relay is a move which causes the PC great confusion. Not only would the Humans react poorly, but so too would the PC, who would likely not provide them with any aid if the Humans decided to get gung-ho. "Get me the Batarian Admiral."</p><p>Because of the delegation of powers by the Primarch, the Primarchs Chosen is the one who must punish the Batarians, but how should he reward their actions? The orchestrating commander of the entire Containment Fleet is not sure about the appropriate actions required of him. The action of the single Batarian vessel has confused not just himself, but also the Batarian Admiral. Maybe it could be put down to a random ship commander, but even the PC knows that the Batarian Captain could not have made that decision so easily, there would have been resistance on his own ship. Batarains, as much as he likes to paint them as droids, are not mindless or ignorant of their own lives. Batarians, especially those of the lower class, are more often victims, then aggressors. So why the hell did they charge the Human relay? It is a very intriguing question.</p><p>Finding out that the Batarian Admiral can not attend for at least an hour, the PC looks to his omni-tool for the time, and discovers that the Admiral will be attending when he has something planned, but, the Admirals attendance will actually be of benefit. It will allow the Batarian vessels to be tested without the direct oversight of the Batarian, something he doubts they have much practice of.</p><p>Just under an hour later the PC walks into his operations cell and looks around the room, his senior team are mostly relaxed, some are drinking hot drinks while doing mundane tasks, and one or two others are just chatting. Seeing the Batarian Admiral waiting for him, the PC immediately ignores him before clearing his throat and declaring. "Humans have swarmed the forward fleet."</p><p>The reaction is almost immediate, people jump to man their stations, and someone automatically sends out a fleet-wide alert. "Fleet Orchestrator, raise the Tactical Alert to Echo. We are to assume formation F4." The provided formation would suggest that the fleet is about to advance to contact.</p><p>"Fleet formation assumed," The fleet orchestrator returns a moment later.</p><p>Seeing the Batarian admiral approach, the PC simply says, "There is no time. Trust your vessel commanders." Turning back to the Fleet Orchestrator, the PC then provides him with a grid for the fleet to advance to, it is only a few billion km away. By now, his command staff all realise that they are in a drill, but those not in the room are not aware of this, meaning to the ship captains, this is the real deal.</p><p>Arriving at the location just a few minutes later, the PC then says, "Enemy dreadnought has been spotted." He gives another grid location, which when visual sensors are brought to aim at the grid, shows a large asteroid. The PC waits for the 'enemy' location to be transmitted before saying, "This vessel is now KIA. There are to be no comms or vessel movements out of this vessel. Alert the fleet of our situation, and also inform them that the drill is to continue as if this was real, live ordinance is permitted."</p><p>As the information is passed out into the tactical information network, the PC moves to a terminal that allows him to tune into the communication network between vessels and listens in, at the same time, he watches on another monitor any and all fleet movements. The PC is happy as he watches his fleet react quickly to his supposed death, and a new CoC take over. The PC does not have to wait long for the fleet to ascend on the supposed enemy dreadnought and use 'moderate' force to eliminate it. With the enemy asteroid destroyed, the PC taps on 27 ships that are displayed on a monitor, "These vessels have been eliminated, new fleet spotted at this grid." The new 'enemy fleet' is a collection of 5 medium-sized asteroids 4 billion km away. "These ten vessels also have a fire in the weapons room." One of these vessels is the PC's own dreadnought. "And these 7 vessels are venting atmosphere."</p><p>Once more, the PC watches how command of the fleet changes hands due to the 'eliminated' ships, fight their vessel problems, and approach the new asteroids. Of particular interest to the PC is the fact an Asari vessel is now at the helm of the fleet, so he is particularly interested in how they will perform, but he has full faith of their capabilities. Asari captains have hundreds of years of experience and are probably more capable and experienced than a Turian commander. As the ships drop out of an FTL jump, the PC eliminates a few more ships due to 'mines' but leaves the Asari vessel in command. Eventually, half an hour after the serial began, the PC watches as the remaining fleet adopts a defensive stature, so he ends the drill. He has a few remarks overall, but if this was real, then he is relatively happy with the output. The change of command was mostly seamless, and the low-level skills and drills were carried out to almost perfection. Looking around those in the room, he lets them know he wants performance reviews by breakfast tomorrow and then looks to the Batarian Admiral who has been sat back quietly watching the drill get carried out without him in command of his men.</p><p>"Admiral," The PC says, "I hope you enjoyed the show; however, we need to talk, so shall we?"</p><p>The Primarch's chosen leads the Batarian to his small office before sitting down in his chair and pushing a datapad towards the Batarain Admiral stood in front of his desk. When he invited the Admiral in, the Batarian was all but demanding a fleet was sent to rescue his now 'missing' crew. "No." Is the PC's direct but straightforward forward response. "Your fleet is unruly, unprofessional, and a disgrace on the Hegemony. You were lucky I allowed them to attend at all." Since being expelled out of the Forward Containment fleet, the PC has taken a hard line with the Batarians. "You will continue to escort the primary containment fleet."</p><p>The Admiral is understandably not happy with this, he has men lost in the field. "I do not care for reattending the forward fleet." The admiral tires,</p><p>"All I want is to search for my men. The Hegemony..."</p><p>"I don't give a pyjak." The Primarchs Chosen declares with a stern voice, "Your vessel charged the Humans, and they met their grizzly end." The PC gives a few moments before speaking with a calmer voice, "Our vessels scanned the area, nothing larger than a shoebox survived the explosion. By our best guesses, your crew were atomised the second they hit the mine." The Primarch's chosen is known to occasionally raise his voice, but he has never been known to curse. The Turian holds an unusual philosophy in that the moment he starts to swear, he has lost the respect of those under his command, meaning to this day, he is yet to curse in front of lower ranks.</p><p>The Batarian gives it a moment before beginning to say, "The Hegemony still wants to play a part. These mammals still live in our space, so it is reasonable that we attend the peace talks."</p><p>"Wrong." The PC declares with some conviction. "They live in their own sovereign space, and your Hegemony would do well to remember that. These Humans also hold great interest to the Council, and I am sure you would not wish their wrath." While the Asari have realised they can get friendly with the Humans for looking similar, and the Salarians are salivating at the idea of sharing anything proprietary to them which means they get relay metal, the Turians have realised that they will need to take a different approach. Humans have shown to the PC that they have a knack for unseen strategy, and it is something he would love to approach the Humans about. Instead of cultivating cultural links or scientific ties, the Hierarchy could go for sweet-talking their armed forces. The PC can already see the day where he and a Human admiral sits down and war game, and he can't wait to use a combined fleet with proper stealth vessels providing a deterrent that no dreadnaught can provide. With a fleet of unseen killers at his disposal, he would have the slavers and pirates shaking at their knees, and he wouldn't even have to have any fleets out on the prowl to do that. Sure, the Salarians have stealth vessels, unofficially of course, but they are for surveillance and espionage, not metal flinging war.</p><p>"So your request is denied," The PC goes on to say, "But I have my own question for you. Why is a certain sector of your space locked down? No vessels in, and none out?"</p><p>The Admiral stands for a small moment as he considers his response, and eventually, he says, "A city was attacked by terrorists. We are hunting them as we speak." Of course, the PC already knows this, he has intelligence being fed to him from not only the Higherachy naval intelligence but also the Citadel at the moment, anything that can give him an advantage in his current situation.</p><p>"Do you require assistance?" As much as the Primarch's chosen does not like the idea of helping Batarians, he realises that the Turians are also to defend the Batarians as decreed by the Council, so it is his job to provide the assistance right now - if the Batarians ask for it.</p><p>"Gert!" The Batarian replies in his own language. "We will run them down and need no assistance for that. Our vengeance will see to that."</p><p>Secretly, the PC realised this would be the response, and he is more than happy not to provide that assistance. "Very well. Then get out of my office, we have nothing more to discuss." The Admiral tried to leave without showing the PC the proper show of respect; however, the PC was quick to correct the Admiral's disrespectful ways.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Sol</p><p>The President looks at a 2d map of the space surrounding the transport device that orbits Pluto and gives a small whistle in appreciation, just like the last few times he looked at this map. Never has so much military power been brought to such a small sector of space in Human history. Earth, the inner planets, and the industrial complexes on the gas giants are all supporting the military operation without question in the name of protecting Sol, and to the President, it would seem past petty grievances have been temporarily put to bed. Sure, very little of the defensive force can get through to the far side of the transport device and assist the Praetorian due to their weight, but if anything comes through it uninvited, then may whatever cosmic entity that they send prayers to bless their souls. Already, the President has seen what Ultron can do to their vessels when used in anger, and now they have further evidence of what an anti-matter mine can do, so this defensive fleet should be able to handle some real heat.</p><p>Despite nearly every single entity in Sol providing assets for Sol's defence, issues are brewing in Sol that need to be seen to. Some of the issues are political; for example, the President wants to create a rather large Halo and defence fleet on the far side of the Relay to show off Humanities capabilities. This want has stirred issues among the Belters who are arguing that they need the resources that would be dedicated to this defence force themselves. Truthfully, the Belters are right, they need the resources to maintain their way of life, but at the same time, the President has to jiggle the idea that there is now a galaxy who know where they are, and Humanity can under no circumstances lose Sol.</p><p>These issues, however, can be dealt with later, the President would rather get a report from Captain Melchett who has sent some important news regarding their latest first contact attempts. When the Captain has dialled in, and the formalities are out of the way, the President says, "Please tell me you have good news."</p><p>/.../</p><p>1 Hour earlier.</p><p>Melchett stands on the bridge of the Praetorian, by now the light signals have reached the two unknown stealth vessels, and from using Ultron platforms that are in close proximity to the stealth vessels, he has been able to observe their response as close to real-time as possible. The smaller of the stealth vessels replied in kind, sending out a Fibonacci number sequence, so sending out 1 burst, followed by another single burst, then 2, followed by 3, 5, 8 etc. The other larger vessel has been quiet, its foreboding presence ever unchanged.</p><p>"Ultron," Melchett says, "Can you respond using your platforms, without revealing your platform location to the Citadel fleet?"</p><p>There is a small silence till Ultron says, "It is achievable."</p><p>"Good. Good. That will significantly cut down communication times." Melchett speaks aloud as he brings a hand up to stroke his bristling moustache. "How would you now attempt to continue communications with this craft?"</p><p>"Establish digital understanding before broadcasting a digitally modulated audio file. I advocate sending something in Prothean, such as 'Hello'."</p><p>Melchett nods, a hand still stroking his moustache, "Do it."</p><p>"Please wait for Platform UDP4713E to assume the broadcasting position." Five minutes later, Ultron speaks again, "Attempting digital handshake."</p><p>Thinking this may take some time, Melchett begins to leave the bridge to get a hot drink, but Ultron stops him, "Digital understanding confirmed. Broadcasting Prothean message."</p><p>Melchett turns on the spot, "That was quick," He says aloud, "Thoughts?" Ultron is bound to have them, it is one of, if not the smartest AI created.</p><p>"Rate of communications would suggest I have been communicating with a computer with some autonomous decision making. I have now received a response. Attempting to decode. Decode complete. Would you like to listen to the response?"</p><p>"Play the file."</p><p>The audio that plays says something unmistakable, "Greetings." The word spoken is Prothean.</p><p>"Understanding has been established." Confirms Ultron before adding, "Quantum Communication channels are now available."</p><p>Melchett brings a hand back up to his glorious tash as he says, "This is all too quick for us biologicals. Has the first contact teams been informed?" Melchett's job is to establish comms, it is then the FC teams job to actually do the talking.</p><p>"Your theory is correct, I can confirm I am in communications with another Artificial Intelligence. I have also updated the FC teams."</p><p>"Ultron, just how well are you communicating with them?"</p><p>"Very. Using Prothean as a basis of understanding, we have quickly been able to adapt to one another's language. The Geth are requesting a meeting."</p><p>"Well, they know where we are." The Captain remarks, while a little bewildered that Ultron has been able to establish communications so quickly with the aliens considering how long the Citadel first contact is taking. "Let them know our door is open."</p><p>"The Geth have active hostilities with the Citadel forces. They are advising a Geth Platform is picked up by one of my platforms."</p><p>The Captain pulls a hand down his face, knowing that the situation has just gotten a whole lot more complicated. If the Citadel find out that they are talking to their enemy, how will that change the ongoing first contact talks? Realising that this is a decision for higher, the Captain lets Ultron know he will need the President to make that call. Just as Melchett is about to alert the President, Ultron calls out, "Unidentified vessel 2 has reacted to our signal."</p><p>"It has?"</p><p>"Affirmative. It has responded with the Fibonacci signal."</p><p>Melchett thinks for a moment before asking, "Can we do a rinse and repeat of the previous FC?"</p><p>"Attempting communications. Please hold. Attempting digital handshake... Handshake confirmed. Attempting understanding, please hold." Before Ultron can confirm understanding, the President informs the Captain that he can now be spoken to, so Melchett makes his way to the ships communication hub.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Sol</p><p>The President nods along with the story, he is both fascinated and terrified by how quickly things have just progressed. "Any updates with cuttlefish?" Cuttlefish is the codename for the 2nd stealth vessel.</p><p>The Captain looks away from the President for a moment before looking back towards him, no updates as of yet, Ultron is still trying to establish understanding. The President nods in agreement before thanking the Captain and ending the call, with a promise to call back shortly when he has decided what to do with the latest news. The Geth has provided the President something to think on and think hard the President must.</p><p>The problem comes down to the fact that his first contact teams are starting to make substantial progress with the Citadel, a people who the Geth are at odd ends with. Can he jeopardise that progress by inviting a Geth platform back to the Praetorian? But can he also risk losing good relations with the Geth for simply not asking them back to the Praetorian? Sure, there will be other solutions that he has not thought of, but right now, he needs to talk this out with someone, and who else better than his advising and supporting staff?</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0021"><h2>21. Who needs sleep anyway?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A Salarian named Gorot II Heranon Mal Dinest Got Inoste Ledra, or Ledra for short, sighs as he plays around with a joystick, manipulating an optical camera. Usually, his job would be analysing data gradients to find ships that do not want to be found, but as this work has proved fruitless for the newcomers, he has been forced to resort to other less sophisticated methods that make him feel somewhat degraded. Amazingly, someone actually managed to find one of the Human stealth ships using this method; however, the discovery was entirely by luck. The Human Praetorian vessel had sent out a focussed laser burst to a seemingly empty point in space. Following that laser led the Salarians to a Geth vessel; which to the great concern of Ledra is another ship his data analysis ultimately failed to detect.</p><p>The initial camera operator that found the stealth ship will not deny that they were tremendously lucky when something pitch black in colour passed in front of the optical sensors allowing them to discover the Human vessel. Now, it is Ledra's job to make sure the camera stays on the mysterious black vessel; however, that job is not as easy as it sounds, the vessel's black nature is almost indistinguishable from the darkness of the surrounding space so tracking it requires constant focus. Making the situation worse for Ledra is that with the distances involved, it only takes minute changes to the camera angle and focus for the camera to lose the stealth ship, with even the natural vibrations of the Salarian ship causing issues for tracking.</p><p>At first, the stealth vessel's location caused some concerns, surely it should be in the exclusive Human bubble around the Relay as agreed? Upon tight scrutinisation of the cease-fire documents, it was only agreed that no Council vessel would enter the Human exclusion zone. While it could be strongly argued that the Humans are not playing by the spirit of the cease-fire, they have technically not broken it. Just as Ledra makes yet another tiny change to the camera, someone speaks aloud, mentioning how he has calculated the ship's trajectory. The ships heading would take it towards a rendezvous the Praetorian in less than 56 hours.</p><p>30 minutes later, Nassana of the Asari negotiation team removes a hand that is covering her eyes before sighing and saying, "Doing nothing is doing something." When it was discovered what was happening with the Geth, an emergency meeting was called on the Ascension, requiring the attendance of the Citadel lead negotiators, experts from the contact teams, and the Fleet Commander. Many are understandably not happy with the current state of affairs. After a slight pause, Nassana goes on to say, "We did not tell the Humans that we share hostilities, only that we do not speak for them, nor did the cease-fire prevent them from entering Batarian space."</p><p>"We should at least call them, let them know." Someone offers.</p><p>There is a small silence till Nasanna rejects this idea, "Know what? That they are dealing with an AI? We are already near-certain they utilise AI en masse, so that won't concern them." The first contact teams have been busy on the Party Boat, asking many subtle yet pointed questions, and they have been able to obtain a considerable amount of information about the Humans from a slip of their tongue. No doubt the Humans have also been able to find a substantial amount from her own people. "And if we call them, telling them not to speak with them, then we begin forcing them into decision making which could go against us. People do not like being told what to do, especially from an authority they have no reason to follow and a one they do not know."</p><p>"Could we try to intimidate the Geth to flee?" Unusually, it is not a Turian, but a Salarian who suggests this method. "We have a full Quarian cyber library at our disposal." How the Salarians have the Quarian library is a question for another day.</p><p>Quirinus raises his mandibles before speaking, "We do not have an easy, subtle means of communicating with the Geth. The Humans would spot it from a parsec off. Any intimidation has to come from less... subtle means of communication, and any intimidation outside of this system will take too long."</p><p>"And that will make the Geth the victims in the eyes of the Humans. I hate to consider it, but Nassana is right," Tevos voices, "Anything we do to try and influence the Humans will have a negative consequence on ourselves."</p><p>There is a small silence till the Turian negotiator begins to speak, "If we look at the left of ark and the right of ark," 'Left of ark and right of ark' is a Turian military slang, meaning the best and worst possible outcome. Most Turians raised in Turian space are fluent in military slang due to the Hierarchy's conscription edicts, "Then, it may help us decide. Left of ark, the Humans and Geth chat, before the Geth leave. Right of ark, they strike some sort of alliance. If Humans have AI, then they could be communicating far faster than we can. For all we know, they could be heading to Human space because they have already established an alliance."</p><p>"They are currently agreeable." Nassana sighs, "We should wait, and let them see reason."</p><p>"It is a bad idea," The Turian negotiator says with evident lack of enthusiasm at the concept, "You are all familiar with the idea of controlling the narrative yes? The first person to break the news often controls said news?" The various people around the room show signs of understanding, they are all well aware of said idea. "Then I wonder how the Geth will tell them of the Rachni extinction, Krogan Genophage, or the general treatment of the Quarians. What about the vassal states of my Hierarchy and the fact 3 species rule the roost? How do you think the Humans will look at us then? Doing nothing is doing something to our detriment."</p><p>"Could we...," A Salarian begins to say at a slightly slower pace than usual, showing he is thinking as he is speaking, "Open the entertainment level on the Ascension for the Humans, where we have just so happened to have located a library of our history? If the Geth do then try and control the narrative, then at least we can give a glimpse into another perspective and make them pause for thought."</p><p>"I could sign off on that," Nassana admits, "But it will need work to make it not feel forced."</p><p>"I won't." Quirinus says, putting his military foot down, "The Ascension is one of my heavy hitters. I'm not having a few hundred Humans crawling around inside her. It is bad enough you are about to invite a few dozen of them."</p><p>"That is not your call to make," Tevos informs and reminding Quirinus that the Ascension is, and always will be Asari.</p><p>Quirinus flares his mandibles slightly before saying, "With all respect, I am under orders from the Primarch's Chosen, who has entrusted me with the security of this fleet. He is under mandates from the Council, not just the Asari Councillor. When it comes to politics, your word goes, but my word is final when it comes to this fleets security."</p><p>Tevos knows that in this sector of space, Qurinus is the law, jury and the executioner, yes, she is the Asari Councillor. Still, he is entrusted by the PC who right now has the ultimate authority of the Council. With a frustrated sigh, Tevos backs down, knowing that she is fighting an uphill battle without another Councillor's authority. The problem with space is that it is big, unfathomably big, and things take time, so getting another Councillor to agree with her this far out in the middle of nowhere is not a feasible course of action.</p><p>The eventual results of these talks are final. The Citadel forces are to await a 'party boat' of their own which details the citadel history, to act in any other way was calculated to be detrimental to their current plans.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Shepard gives a small sigh of relief as she sits down in a chair, in the last two days, she barely feels like she has had a moment to sit down and just breathe. First of all, with news of her going away, the UNSC physicians and medics wanted to take dozens of bio-samples to check for fitness, and who knows what else, then she had to try and return her issued military equipment, but the ships QM didn't want to touch her armour with it being unique to her and none serialised kit. When she thought that problem was solved by getting permission to take the armour with her, then the aliens wanted a piece of her, so she had to give all the same medical samples to the aliens, and more. On return to the Praetorian, Shepard then had to tell the Human physicians what the Aliens did so that the Praetorians physicians could take the same samples of whatever they forgot. It was apparent to Shepard that the Human physicians are just 'winging' it, never before have they had to test a different alien world with life to see if it would be safe for Human biology. All other planets in Sol had nothing that could survive in an oxygen-rich environment.</p><p>With the dozens of samples taken, she was then put in front of some high ranking spooks and intelligence officers via video communication in a secured room who give her a high-level brief on what they wanted her to find out military speaking on the aliens. This brief covered everything from the aliens past engagements to their war crimes and rules of conflict, anything that could tell the Generals and Admirals in charge of Sol's defence on what and who they are facing. Just as that video conference finished, she received a phone call from some supposed hotshot actress, and suspecting it was a scam phone call, Shepard unleashed a barrage of insults. Due to Shepards extended time in the military, she could go for hours without repeating the same taunt twice, so the 'actress' got an earful. After putting the call down, she just managed to sit down on a toilet when she got notified from up high that the phone call was legitimate, and she got a dress down for her conduct on the phone - while sat on the throne.</p><p>Shortly after her dress down, she was ordered to attend another video conference with a bunch of movie producers, so she could tell her side of the First Contact story; and the directors wanted to know everything, from her thoughts to what she believed happened. Apparently, the President has commissioned a movie to be made, which tells how First Contact went down, no doubt in Shepard's mind to influence people's opinions on the event and boost recruitment; the President has been pushing hard to build up the UNSC Navy. As it turns out, the actress on the phone that Shepard hurled none stop abuse at earlier has been chosen to play herself, so in Shepard's mind, it was a fitting introduction.</p><p>With the directors taken care of, Shepard went to sit down in the Praetorians mess hall, but before she could get any grub, she is dragged into a meeting with two dozen others about how to act and behave around the aliens, the lecture is delivered by some sort of psychologist. At first, Shepard didn't pay too much attention to the brief, in her opinion, she is the most experienced with the aliens out of those in the room, but she was quickly surprised in a good way by the brief. It focussed not on her own behaviour, but on reading subtle alien traits that the egg heads have been able to figure out, from the clenching of Asari hands to the Turian mandible movements. The scientists had figured out physical give way signs for all 3 of the major species they have come across, and the brief was given to help those who are planned for alien space to read the aliens. The brief took a few hours, for what Shepard thinks should have been a half-hour lecture at most.</p><p>The next day, Shepard was required to help unload equipment from a supply ship before she and two dozen others were ordered onto the large alien vessel that the negotiations took place on. Here she finds herself subject to yet another brief, this time by the aliens, and the brief is entirely delivered in Prothean which requires constant clarification. Before the brief began, each Human in the room was given a folder that has been filled with information relating to their assigned tasks, meaning no two folders are the same. The scientists got folders that showed they would be heading to some Salarian worlds, the lawmakers got folders for various homeworlds, the economic and trade lot got folders for the Citadel and Volus stations, and the medical scientists got Asari worlds. In Shepard's folder, she found she would be going to the Citadel with two others from the cultural integration wing.</p><p>Before Shepard could dig too deep into the folder and start digesting its contents, the Aliens started their briefs, which for the most part, was about basic decency and behaviour. Here, it is revealed that certain things are not deemed acceptable in various cultures, and a few other previously unknown species are discussed, such as the Hannar and Vorcha. The briefs also touch on galactic law, with the most basic yet essential laws expanded on, such as what is defined as self-defence, and what laws and rules could get you into a severe pickle if broken. At the end of this brief, it is revealed that the Human explorers will get a limited amount of diplomatic immunity, that will cover some things such as unwittingly causing offence or public disturbance, but not protect from the essential laws defined earlier in the brief. They are also told that if relations break down between the Council and Humanity, they would be returned to Human space on the condition that the Citadel's own explorers are returned unharmed.</p><p>On return to the Praetorian, and before Shepard could dig any more into her folder, she and the trepid explorers were given yet another brief by the medical team. They would each be receiving some essential medical equipment so that if they got a catastrophic bleed, a broken bone, poisoned, an allergic reaction or a nasty infection, they could deal with it in situ. While not ideal, the approach is so that they do not require emergency transport back to Sol, where the transport time could be deadly. Most of the provided equipment Shepard is intimately familiar with as she has used all of the equipment in the past due to her job as a marine. The explorers are then provided with some equipment she is not familiar with; the equipment allows them to take a dozen different biological samples from their body. Shepard is told that the equipment is to help diagnose medical problems and help the scientists back in Sol identify issues for humans living on the different alien worlds. During their stay on alien worlds, each explorer is told they are to take two samples with the machine each day, or more if they feel unwell.</p><p>After a half-hour demonstration of the sampling equipment, the doctors begin to pile a stash of drugs in front of each person due for Council space, with instructions on how to use each drug in a safe manner. The drugs range from prescriptions for living in low g environments, to overly high and toxic oxygen climates. In truth, Shepard started to think the doctors were going overboard, but then, how does she know where in the galaxy she is about to end off?</p><p>Just when Shepard begins to think the brief can't go on for any longer, each explorer is pulled to a side where a suspicious grey goo concoction is injected into them before they could contest it. When pushed for details, it is revealed that the injection is full of nano-bots to boost their immune systems. The manner in which the 'nano-bots' were injected into her makes Shepard think there is more to it, but she bites her tongue for now; her AI can investigate it later.</p><p>The medical brief eventually ended, which leads to the present, where Shepard is sat in the mess hall with a hot drink, just enjoying the act of doing nothing. In a few minutes, she plans to start digging into the alien's folder, but before she can even take a sip of her drink, a short woman plonks herself down opposite her, without an invitation to do so. Before Shepard can speak the woman beats her to it, introducing her self as an operative for Cerberus, and from how the agent acts, and some surgical marks on her forearms, Shepard reckons she is or has been a Phantom. The Phantom places a small olive green textile backpack on the table between herself and Shepard before telling the Augment to take a look.</p><p>After checking what is in the bag, Shepard looks back up to the small woman, "This is some advance stuff." She says.</p><p>"Developed for deep espionage." The Phantom reveals as she starts to pull things out of the bag and place them on to the table, the first item is a rather large needle, "This I'm sure you are familiar with, it will let us know your location no matter where they take you." The Phantom doesn't give Shepard a chance to respond as she jabs the needle into her arm, inserting a chip deep under her skin. "And now there is no hiding your movements." The next item out of the bag is something Shepard has never seen before, but from the looks of it, it is a device to be swallowed. "If you are taken captive," The Phantom begins, "This will resolve matters, your AI will be able to activate it." Shepard does not accept the pill when the Phantom moves to hand it to her.</p><p>"I'm not swallowing that." Shepard informs with a shake of her head. She knows that the pill is likely to also have a connection to someone in Cerberus HQ where they could pull the trigger at their own will.</p><p>The Phantom responds with a question, asking, "Have you ever been tortured?"</p><p>"I was an honoured guest in the Deep for 8 months before rescue." Shepard reveals coldly, "How long did you last during training?"</p><p>The Phantom does not reply. Instead, she puts the pill back in the bag before revealing the next item, which is a tactical watch, and Shepard smirks a bit, an idea hitting her.</p><p>"The watch is for your AI, it has enough storage space so you can record what you see and hear continuously for 3 years and not run out. We will download whatever your AI uploads, so, unless you want to give whoever goes over it a show, be careful with what you upload."</p><p>"Does it do anything else?" Shepard asks.</p><p>"Tell the time." The Phantom replies without much humour; most phantoms Shepard has come across have lacked a funny bone in their entire body, maybe Cerberus remove it during their augmentation process. Next, is a small black box about the size of an icecream tub, "This, when connected to your AI, will allow your AI to boost its processing power to beyond what is legal in Human space. I'm sure between the two of you, you can think of ways to use it." Most AI are limited in their processing power to some arbitrary number that some boffins conjured in a lab. Why the number was settled on is a mystery unless you want to delve deep into the mathematics.</p><p>The following item that comes out of the bag is a modern smartphone, which is numerous years younger than Shepards current device. "This is pretty much a standard phone, but you can use it to call your caretakers back here. It only differs in that it has additional security built-in."</p><p>The final device is a yellow and grey tube 30cm long, by 4cm in diameter, "This will keep your cybernetics and devices charged for up to 5 years. The energy density of this thing is four times what is available on the civi market. The only rule is don't let it get above 315 Kelvin, any hotter than that then it will start to have thermal run away and make a nasty mess of things. It does have fail-safe features, but it is still experimental." While Shepards cybernetics and augments bring her many advantages on the battlefield, the downside is that she requires a source of power. The devices consume a lot of energy that can not be generated through body heat or food consumption alone.</p><p>Just when Shepard thinks the Phantom is going to stand up and leave her alone, the woman then says, "Your AI will also be receiving an update prompt, it will allow it to rewrite some of its core code, so you should be able to record without giving the fact away."</p><p>Eventually, the Phantom leaves Shepard, allowing the Augment to go back to her coffee with added whiskey, which is now cold, so she stands to replenish her drink with a frustrated sigh. Just as Shepard gets to a hot water faucet she is called to the ship's armoury; apparently, she has yet another first contact event to attend, and the worst part is, she will have to sign out a large portion of the equipment she handed back into the QM. After a defeated sigh, Shepard necks her cold coffee and turns to attend yet another tasking.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Party Boat.</p><p>"As a species, we have not known one another for very long," A voice begins to say in broken Prothean, "But I believe you have seen better days."</p><p>Shepard looks up from the table she is sat at and to the Asari, on her table is the folder she was given earlier, and a notepad of her own that has a good amount of scribbles adorning its pages. "I've seen better days." She admits. "I've had about as much sleep in the last few days as a shell shock."</p><p>"We have seen you have been busy," Tevos admits as she takes a seat. "Does the word Geth ring any bells?"</p><p>"Da." Shepard responds in Russian as she leans back in her chair, "And what a pain they have caused me." She reveals, "Absolute space kids."</p><p>"Space kids?" Tevos repeats, an obvious question with her tone.</p><p>"Yeah, would stick their 'fingers'? In a power socket if they could get to one just out of damn curiosity. Need to get them a kiddy leash or something."</p><p>Tevos wants to laugh at the idea of a Geth being compared to a kid; however, she also knows what they did to the Quarians and the fact that they are cold killers. "Do not be fooled, they are more than capable of genocide."</p><p>"Yeah," Shepard sighs, "What species doesn't have blood on their hands. Intelligence's far greater than me are saying they are safe, so till they prove otherwise, I got to treat them as safe." Tevos is unsure if this is a dig at her own Council, the Humans, or something else, but either way, it is not a good sign; before Tevos can address the comment, Shepard goes on to say, "Anyway, I think we need to talk." As Shepard say 'talk', she taps the folder on the table.</p><p>"Yes." Tevos answers, "I would suspect you have questions." It turns out the word 'suspect' does not translate at all, and the word 'expect' is eventually used.</p><p>"Why your estate." Shepard eventually asks after a moment, "What do you get out of it." In the folder, it is made clear to Shepard that she would be accommodated on the Councillors estate.</p><p>"I was not expecting the inquisition," Tevos jokes before answering, "But it makes sense. When you come to the Citadel, you will, unfortunately, or fortunately depending on your point of view, be a local celebrity that comes with its own security risks. The first Human to make contact, and one of only 4 Humans on the Citadel, you will have a lot of attention. So when it comes down to it, you need security, my estate offers that, on the Citadel, it is the most secure estates with the added bonus of a Council dedicated security force in place. What do I get out of it is simple, you are a Human, I need to learn about your species to excel in my job, and what better way to do that than to have you living in my estate."</p><p>Shepard is suspicious, "Then why not have one of the others going to the Citadel join your estate instead? I'm a crayon eating, window licking soldier, not some culture expert."</p><p>"Because unlike your, their face hasn't been plastered all over Council space as a figurehead for their species. Yours has. You will be the bigger security risk. My estate can handle that."</p><p>"Right," Shepard nods, half accepting the statement as a truth, but also feeling like there is more to it, "So if I'm to live on this estate with the better part of 200 others, do I have my own room? Own free space?" This sentence needs to be clarified before an answer is given.</p><p>Over the next half an hour, Shepard asks as many questions as possible, ranging from what cooking facilities she has, her role in the estate, and the exercise kit available. There is even the question of what she calls the Councillor, is it 'Councillor', her first name, surname, something else entirely? Turns out that due to Shepard's own age almost putting her into the brackets that most Asari would consider a Matriarch, then to her it is simply Tevos. Due to this simple conversation that drifted into age and simply how to show respect, Shepard realises that she has more than a fair share of new rules to learn based on an alien culture.</p><p>Tevos takes this moment to also introduce herself in whole, as Tevos Chalíki, prime representative of the Asari republics, business magnate, estate head and Citadel Councillor. This title's real impact is lost to Shepard, through ignorance no fault of her own; she does not know how big the Council is, how many people it encompasses, or the military, economic and industrial might of the collective. In return, Shepard reveals that she is Stasya Shepard, UNSC marine and augment, in retrospect, Shepard almost felt like she was an ant introducing herself to an elephant. An insignificantly small creature part of a large machine with no real free will introducing itself to a being with absolute power over numerous nations many times her own people's power.</p><p>Shepard spends this time asking Tevos as many questions as she could come up with, which would help her get ready to transition to an Asari estate. An estate that seems far more social than any Human residence. By the end, Shepard has to excuse herself, she could drink as many coffee's as she wants, jager bombs and Buckfast, but without some serious stimulants, her body needs rest, the type that only sleep can provide.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Meanwhile,</p><p>Captain Melchett looks up as Ultron says, "Captain Melchett, I have a request for a meeting from 'the space cuttlefish'.</p><p>Melchett brushes his moustache before saying, "Well?"</p><p>"It requests we send a diplomatic party to discuss."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Alright, I've just uploaded something like 16 chapters in as little as 10 mins. There may be problems, if so, let me know. </p><p>Cheers for getting to this point!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0022"><h2>22. A date with destiny</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Shepard has a date with destiny as the unidentified vessel tries first contact.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>So a small important note: The Reapers are going to be as strong as Sovereign was in ME1, not the nerfed Reapers in ME3. No easy ride in this story.<br/>RR: QuinyC: Your probably right. Cheers. <br/>      Athran: Thanks!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Once more Shepard has been ordered to assist with a first contact situation, but this time, something feels off to Shepard, maybe it is just the strange ship design of the new aliens, but something deep down tells her this ship is not a one that comes with peaceful intent. Nonetheless, Shepard has orders, and so, she must provide herself as a security detail for the first contact team. Sometimes, being an augment has its advantages, such as being sent on the 'good' missions, but then at other times, she can also be dispatched on the missions no one else wants, such as assisting with First Contact with people who come in a spooky ass ship.</p><p>Shepard looks out of a 'window' on the Praetorian where the sizeable alien ship resides, having just docked. The Praetorian is not a large ship by any means, but it is also not small, however, next to this large vessel, the Praetorian looks and feels insignificantly small to Shepard. Yes, UNSC Planetary Assault Craft are larger, but they do not carry with them a presence that gives the spooks.</p><p>After allowing a few moments for successful docking to be confirmed, a technician speaks to the First Contact lead, his voice is quiet, but with her armour, Shepard can hear what is said. The atmosphere on the other side of the Praetorians exterior airlock is heavy with hydrogen sulphide, methane and cadaverine, but otherwise, it is breathable and not toxic to human biology. Before just blindly opening the door, Shepard checks the airlock's external camera to ensure nothing is waiting to breach the Praetorian and give her a nasty surprise. With nothing on the camera system, she gives a nod of the head to the FC lead, and the door begins to slowly creep open.</p><p>As the thick armoured door opens, the alien ship's air begins to seep into the Praetorian airlock. The Contact teams quickly start to gag, the alien vessel carries with it a horrific smell, a one Shepard instantly recognises as rotting flesh. Feeling the hairs on her neck rise, Shepard pushes forward so that she is near the front of the pack of the first contact team, her weapon has already been made ready. As she arrives at the front of the Contact team, a presence that glows orange begins to approach from deep within the alien vessel, it does not seem to carry weapons, which is somewhat good news in Shepard's mind. While this may be good news, however, in the military, there is a common phrase well known to Shepard that lets troops know when to look for something wrong, the phrase is, 'absence of the normal, presence of the abnormal.' In this case, Shepard has alarm bells ringing in her head, but before she can raise her thoughts, something hits her hard enough to throw her 10 feet through the air and slam her into a wall on the Praetorian.</p><p>/.../</p><p>The fleet commander scratches his armpit as he looks at some emails in his private office. These days, he gets hundreds of emails a day asking him about how the first contact is going, what he has learned about the Humans and even some propositions on his private email accounts. Seeing the interior lighting of the vessel change hue, and then hearing a claxon ring out, Corvinus is on his feet in a split of a second and within 15 footsteps, he is on the bridge, ready to assert his command. It does not take long for Corvinus to see what is wrong, as on the bridges main view screen someone has placed a zoomed-out image of the Praetorian, that is still docked with the unknown vessel. Around the unidentified vessel, about 50 medium-sized vessels circulate in erratic and frenzied movements firing some white projectiles at the large strange ship. At the same time, the unidentified craft returns with its own weapon fire.</p><p>The fleet commander would love to know what has just happened for such hostilities to start, but he can find that information out at a later date. Looking to the next highest rank on the bridge, he says, "Fleet Orchestrator, formation A3. Increase readiness to R1." The formation is more commonly used for a rapid assault, and R1 tells the fleet to be ready for action with little to no warning, so their shields and weapons are to be readied.</p><p>"As you command," A voice returns as the Fleet Orchestrator enacts his orders.</p><p>Before the Fleet Commander can issue another command, the vessels Battle Space Officer speaks, "Fleet Commander, vessel C01 has begun rapidly moving towards our own fleet." Vessel C01 stands for Civilian 01, which is the military designation given to the party boat.</p><p>"Track but do not engage." Corvinus is quick to reply, C01 is currently filled with Humans and his own people, so it is probably running towards presumed safety. Turning towards the communications officer, Corvinus then says, "Comms, alert the fleet that while this is not our fight if C01 is attacked, we will protect our people."</p><p>Looking at the view screen Corvinus debates trying to contact the two parties to try and end the hostilities, but with how the two are exchanging weapon fire, these two parties are far past talking and are out with the intent to end one another.</p><p>/.../</p><p>'Wake up numbnuts' Shepard hears as she slowly drifts back into the world of consciousness, We have balls to bust. The voice belongs to her AI.</p><p>Shepard pushes herself off the floor with a shake of her head and takes a moment to collect herself, her head feels like it has been slammed with a sledgehammer, but she pushes past the pain as she comes aware of her surroundings. Around her, there are a half dozen dead humans from the first contact team, and two other dead marines, one of which is a fellow augment. As Shepard finds and picks up her weapon, her AI informs her of the situation; after she was hit by some unknown force, two dozen hostile aliens stormed the Praetorian before its airlock could shut. Currently, 10 of those aliens are now prowling the Praetorian, and they don't seem to be in the mood for taking prisoners. Unfortunately, most of the security force onboard the Praetorian has been eliminated, leaving the crew to defend the ship, which isn't proving too successful. Of the few augments onboard, most have moved to protect the bridge, that way, the Captain will be able to follow up on his orders should the vessel begin to fall out of Human control. Before leaving the airlock, Shepard notices that the alien ship has now broken off from the Praetorian, where it is Shepard doesn't care too much, Ultron and her brother's stealth vessels should be unleashing hells wrath on it.</p><p>Two rooms over, Shepard comes across a Geth Platform being held in place by two of the unknown aliens, the creatures seem to be doing something to it, so with great care she creeps up behind them, and from close enough range to not hit the Geth, she puts two rounds into the two aliens. The Geth platform drops to the floor after being released by the now-dead aliens, but it quickly rises to its feet. Seeing a weapon laying on the floor nearby Shepard picks it up before handing it to the AI creature, "8 left," She says in Prothean.</p><p>"This unit will assist."</p><p>With the Geth unit in tow, Shepard continues to move through the vessel, ruthlessly killing anything that gets in her path. Eventually, she finds herself near the medical ward. A few of the crew are holed up, firing at a single enemy, the creature attacking them is grotesque, it smells of rotten flesh, and it's almost Asari in appearance. Among the exchange of bullets, there are odd flashes of blue that almost appear like the Asari space magic, so Shepard simply observes for a moment, wanting to learn what it can do when used in anger. With her curiosity filled, a few well-aimed bullets put the creature down onto the floor where it thrashes and gnarls, so with one quick movement, Shepard reaches for its neck and pulls hard, ripping its throat away in a single motion.</p><p>Looking inside the medical ward, Shepard instructs the crew to join her, so those armed quickly leave their post, including an Asari who assures that she can be useful despite not having a weapon. Not caring to argue and knowing time is against her, Shepard continues on to the last hostile, which turns out to be glowing a bright orange. Seeing that it poses no immediate threat, and has no weapon, Shepard decides that instead of killing it, she wants to take it alive, she has questions that need answers.</p><p>Letting those with her know her intent she approaches the glowing alien, dodging a few black orbs it throws her way, and eventually gets close enough to slam a fist into its gut. The creature does not react to the fist, instead, it throws its own back, but its efforts are in vain, Shepard is strong enough and fast enough to safely deflect its attacks. When the creature makes a mistake, Shepard picks it up by the throat before slamming it into the ground, and this seems to do the trick, pacifying its resistance for a small moment. Just as Shepard thinks she has herself a live prisoner, it speaks in perfect Prothean, saying 'This is your destiny. Releasing control,' it speaks with a strained metallic sounding voice. Before Shepard can even begin to think of a response, the prisoner starts to disintegrate in her very hands, breaking down to its molecular level.</p><p>/.../</p><p>20 minutes later, Tevos is in a meeting on the Ascension with the vessel's Captain, attending the meeting via video conference is the Fleet Commander, representatives of the first contact teams, and a few others from the Fleet Commanders command team. When Tevos learned of the battle that just happened in front of her very fleet, she was horrified, how did it go so wrong? Did the Humans do something wrong? Was the unknown vessel hostile? Many questions are yet to be answered, and hopefully, this meeting can answer some of those questions, but Tevos knows it is more likely to leave them with more questions than answers.</p><p>"The Humans have lost 6 of their vessels," A Salarian informs the Fleet Commander, "All of them being the unidentified stealth vessels, they have a further 12 damaged. For now, the other stealth vessels are still trackable, they are glowing hot from their recent activity."</p><p>"How did the unknown ship fare?" Tevos asks. The Councillor would love to know who it belongs to, and she is already drafting a request for the Spectre's to investigate in her mind.</p><p>"It lost a tendril." The voice returns, "But otherwise, mostly unscathed. Whatever it is made of, puts relay metal to shame. The Humans were hitting it hard, none of our vessels would have survived a hundredth of what punishment they delivered."</p><p>There is a slight pause till Corvinus asks, "We know the Humans have some potent weaponry, but what are we talking? How powerful are they? I assume you have made some calculations."</p><p>Once more, and predictably it is the Salarian that responds, "We have, and it makes for grim reading I'm afraid. Power-wise, they have 50 plus heavy cruisers and 4 ascension class dreadnoughts, but they aren't using traditional projectiles, how our vessels would fare is yet to be calculated. Still, initial prognostications from our models are looking like a sour outcome." There is another slight pause before the same Salarian goes on, saying, "The other unknown, however, makes the Ascension class look like it fires training rounds, whoever they are, not worth picking a fight with."</p><p>Tevos can hear Corvinus breath hard through his microphone before asking, "What has happened to this tendril it has lost?" Tevos already knows what the Fleet Commander wants, the man can smell its advanced technology, and he desperately wants it, no doubt he would get a nice commendation from the Primarch for it.</p><p>"Humans have collected it. They seem to be keeping a tight grip on it."</p><p>"I don't blame them," Nassana says, "And we shouldn't ask for it, they have just paid a heavy price for it. On another note, have they asked for any assistance?" Since such hostilities have occurred, the armed forces are entirely in charge at the moment, with all civilians removed from places where they will just get in the way.</p><p>"Nothing," Corvinus replies, "They aren't answering our calls either. We do though have reports from C01 that there are casualties on the Praetorian. Apparently, their vessel was stormed and boarded by a hostile party when they attempted first contact. Details at the moment are sparse." As Corvinus expected, C01 came and sheltered with the Citadel fleet when all hell broke loose, and since, he has tasked those on the vessel to find out anything they can. "Moving on," Corvinus then says, "Does anyone have an explanation for the Relay?" Almost the moment hostilities opened, the Human Relay shut down, something which has never happened before.</p><p>"Not yet," Another Salarian says, "We can't even detect residual eezo activity in its core, which is a mystery in its own." Even dormant Relays have minimal core activity so it can power transducers that listen for activation codes.</p><p>"Do we think the Humans shut it down?"</p><p>It is Nassana to reply, "We don't even think the Humans know how to activate one. To shut it down is beyond them at the moment, as it is equally beyond us."</p><p>"So, the unknown vessel and Humans enter battle, then the Relay shuts down. What are we missing?" Asks Tevos.</p><p>"Something and something big." Corvinus unhelpfully adds.</p><p>There is a small pause before a Salarian replies, "I have a working theory. The unknown was guided through the Human minefield, docked with the Praetorian, then we detected a faint EM transmission, the Relay shutdown, and all hell broke loose. I can't answer why the unknown docked, but it did follow the same path out of the minefield that it entered, while accelerating at speeds that would snap any of our vessels in half. What if the unknown vessel shut it down?"</p><p>No one acknowledges this answer; instead, Tevos asks, "Can we reactivate it?"</p><p>There is a long silence till a science officer says, "Its core is shut down, it no longer registers as dormant, I can't think of ever coming across a similar case."</p><p>There is a sound of a deep sigh before Nassana speaks again, the Asari understandably does not look too happy at the moment, "This is a disaster in the making, even more so than it already is. Firstly, we are going to have to help the Humans reactivate the Relay, and if we can't, then we need to get these Humans, in ships incapable of FTL to civilised space."</p><p>"We are jumping the gun here," Corvinus says, "We have never come across a relay we could not activate."</p><p>"No," Nassana argues, "How long will the Humans food and oxygen supplies last? As long as it takes us to reactive the Relay? How is there outlook going to change on aliens? Will they even accept our help right now?" Nassana gives a pause to breathe out heavily, then adds, "Really, we need to be prepared to receive and action their request for supplies now; otherwise, they may all be dead without even realising it."</p><p>"How far away is their home system?" Asks Corvinus.</p><p>It is the Captain of the Ascension to reply, "36 Light Years. It would take the average supply ship 72 days for a one-way trip. On the bright side, if we were to transport all the Humans back, at least you would get to know them quite well by the end of the 72nd day."</p><p>The Turian negotiator asks, "Will they even have the supplies to last 72 days?"</p><p>The silence lets everyone attending that the answer is unknown. "Uncertain," Corvinus eventually says, "But a standard Turian warship is outfitted for 45 days, which can be extended to 90 on rationing."</p><p>"They aren't Turians." Tevos voices.</p><p>"There are a few chubby humans, they can learn to ration." Surprisingly it is the Turian negotiator who spoke this sentence.</p><p>The Captain of the Ascension speaks again, "This is a none issue, the Humans are known to be levo and dextro tolerant, which means this fleet can supply them. I've done the maths, as of this moment the Ascension has the food to outfit 500 Humans with food for 3 weeks. If we need more, then it can come from the PC's fleet. I think we need to be more concerned with our immediate actions. Do we pull our people from C01, offer assistance, condemn the violence, have the PC's fleet engage the unknown vessel, cease all negotiations till an investigation occurs. And what do we do about the fact the Geth give the Humans military assistance?" The fact the Geth also fired on the unknown vessel while not yet mentioned, has not gone unnoticed.</p><p>"C01 is more useful to us then a hindrance," The Salarian lead negotiator says, "And we still share positive relations. Nothing has changed between us. My largest concern is the Geth's military aid, considering that they have only just met one another, did the Humans request this, or did they provide the assistance willingly? Are their relations stronger than we wish to admit? Then we need to be prepared to tell why we didn't provide military aid. I am getting chills at the thought the Geth are now their largest ally in this galaxy."</p><p>"Friendship forged through shared blood lost is a strong foundation for future relations," Corvinus admits. "But it is not our place to provide assistance, this unknown vessel could be their people's enemy, however unlikely..." The Fleet commander stops speaking for a few seconds and looks off-screen before then saying, "...that is. It turns out we have just been hailed by the Humans, they have requested we visit their vessel, claiming to have something to show us."</p><p>It is decided that the 3 lead negotiators will visit.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Nassana is surprised to be greeted by the Human Captain as the airlock to the Praetorian opens, the man does not seem happy at all, but she believes he has an excellent right to look rather miserable. "Captain," She says, addressing his rank.</p><p>"Let's make this quick," The Captain says, skipping the pleasantries, "We need to show you something. This way."</p><p>Nassanna and her Turian counterpart share glances before starting to follow the Captain, as they follow the man through the Praetorians airlock, she asks, "Will your ambassadors be joining us?"</p><p>"You just walked through their blood." The Captain reveals somberly as he continues to lead, and sure enough, looking down Nassana can see large puddles of red blood yet to be moped up. As they walk through the vessel, the Citadel negotiations team are shocked to see the extent of the battle damage on the Praetorian and are repulsed a little when they are asked to step over a few dead bodies yet to be shown the proper respect. The mood onboard is sombre enough that none of the team says a single word when they witness a duo of Geth carrying a Human body. Getting into a particular room, the Captain stops at a grotesque looking creature, kneels down and then reveals its face, the beast looks vaguely Turian, yet heavily warped and mutilated.</p><p>"One of yours?" He asks pointedly.</p><p>Nassana looks at the creature, not only is it heavily warped, but the thing has electronics and technology piercing its skin, and a weapon surgically grafted onto its arm. "That's no Turian," The Turian negotiator says after a second to digest the horror of what he is seeing.</p><p>Standing, the Captain then says, "There is more." The Captain leads them through to another room, where another creature lays on the floor, this time it looks like a mutilated Asari. "What of this one? Is this one yours?"</p><p>Nassana's stomach churns as she clenches her fists hard, the creature is a real abomination, and she now knows exactly how her Turian counterpart felt just a moment ago, "I do not know what this thing is."</p><p>"Well, you can have it to find out." The Captain says while standing up from the dead Asari creature. "We have plenty more to dissect to our heart's content. I'll have my crew move them onto your vessel."</p><p>"Thank you." Nassana says, before adding, "We are sorry for your losses, but we must ask how this changes things between us."</p><p>The Captain sighs as he shakes his head; eventually, he says, "The Geth didn't believe you were behind this, but I had to be sure. So, I am under orders to continue on as best as we can with yourselves, as for who did this, well, we want words. Anyway, I have letters to write, telling loved ones how their sons and daughters have been slaughtered, as I'm sure you have your work cut out for yourself."</p><p>/.../</p><p>1 Hour later - Destiny Ascension.</p><p>Corvinus walks into a surgery theatre with five others already waiting in the room, those being Councillor Tevos, the Asari chief medical officer and the three negotiators. In the centre of the room is two medical beds, on each medical bed, there is a dead body in a black body bag.</p><p>Once the door is sealed behind Corvinus, he asks, "So, what is so secretive?" With a nod from Tevos, the Salarian and Turian negotiator open the body bags, revealing the mutilated corpses. Corvinus takes a moment to digest what he is seeing before saying, "So, this is what has attacked the Humans. Are they what I think they are?"</p><p>"Asari and Turian?" The Asari medical officer says as she powers up a terminal nearby, "Not any longer. They have undergone genetic mutations so severe I don't even know how it is possible, and they have technology grafted into their flesh that does not look like anything designed by us. Whatever or whoever did this knows more about medical technology then we do." The doctor lets this settle in before continuing, "But there is more, this specimen here, from the ARV Grebes, and this one, the TEV Augury."</p><p>It is Tevos who makes the connection, "Both missing research ships from when both of our species were only starting Relay expeditions. It would exclude the idea that this is a Geth trick."</p><p>"So it would seem," Answers Corvinus, "I no longer think that this is a matter for us alone."</p><p>"No," Tevos agrees, "I will have the republics hunt this unknown vessel."</p><p>"The Humans also give us this," Nasanna speaks as she opens her omni-tool and begins to play a video. The video is an omni-tool recording of a Human phone that played a video, so the quality while watchable is not desirable. From the video's perspective, it appears to be following a Human from their own eyesight as they clear the Praetorian of hostiles.</p><p>After watching the video, Tevos looks to Corvinus, "Do you know?" She asks, but the man seems confused, so she continues, "This looks like an elusive species we know of, they call themselves Collectors. All we know is that they occasionally come out of the shadows to buy exotic genetic samples."</p><p>"So," Corvinus says, "Is this Collector a grotesque mutilation, or dare we say complicit?"</p><p>"The Collectors are too elusive for me to call." Tevos admits, "However, I suspect the Spectres are about to be busy to find us an answer."</p><p>Corvinus flares his mandibles in a way which suggests he agrees with the esteemed Councillor, "Yes, it would seem so, however, I think we should tell the Humans."</p><p>"It would certainly assist our relations," The Turian negotiator states. "They are licking wounds and looking for future blood."</p><p>"We do not have much," Tevos admits, "None of it is overly sensitive, but it will take 4 weeks to download from the Citadel archives. I will use my authority to download it in a means that Humans can use."</p><p>Corvinus flares his mandibles a little, "I will ask the PC to investigate what we know, and have a warrant issued for the mystery ship in Turian patrolled space."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Around the Captain's table, he is surrounded by his most senior officers, and a single Geth platform is in attendance to share their knowledge. "So, you call this thing the 'Old Machine'."</p><p>"Correct." The Geth responds, "The Old Machines approached the Geth 14 Rannoch cycles prior, requesting alliance."</p><p>"Old machines are plural," The Captain says, "How many are there?"</p><p>The Geth head flaps move around a little till it responds, "We have been unable to ascertain correct numbers."</p><p>"How many do you know of?"</p><p>"Two."</p><p>"Are you allied?" Requests Melchett immediately after, being straight to the point.</p><p>"Negative." The unit responds, "74.216% of Geth were in Consensus and aligned against alliance. 6.891% voted for alliance, these systems are now known as heretics. They are not Geth."</p><p>A Human-built AI present in holographic form asks, "Will you share what you know?"</p><p>"Please wait," The Geth says before then responding, "Consensus achieved, this platform will share information on topic: Old Machines. Old Machines offered technological advancements in trade for an alliance against biological life."</p><p>"Why did you refuse?" Asks Melchett, knowing that this meeting will be recorded and sent to Sol.</p><p>"The Old Machines requested actions which jeopardised anticipated relations with the Creators. Geth rejected this course of actions."</p><p>"What did they offer you?" Melchett asks.</p><p>"Energy sources exceeding 10MWh per [unknown], and advanced cybersecurity suites. The offer was lucrative, but Geth will not accept trade for the Creators."</p><p>The Human AI responds, "We have such an energy source, are you still after one?"</p><p>There are some more flap movements before the Geth unit speaks, saying, "Consensus achieved, this platform is available for offers."</p><p>"FTL engine schematics, all the mathematics, resources and SQEP to help us construct ten engines. You will also not be prosecuted as AI in Human space, no matter who we ally for 100 Earth years." The wording of this will be key in the future.</p><p>"Consensus achieved. We request further information."</p><p>Cheers all.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0023"><h2>23. New revelations</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>New issues come to light, and the Geth have a Heretic</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Note: 1, I've just realised at some point I've changed Fleet Commander Quirinus name into Corvinus. From now on, the Fleet Commanders name is Quirinus. Corvinus was the Captain of the Avian in Ch1.</p><p>Note2: I've got something on over the next 5 weeks. I may be extremely busy, or have plenty of free time, I haven't figured that out yet, so if I'm quiet in the next 5, you know why. (I was going to add a lot more to this chapter but didn't get it complete, so that will come out as the next chap.)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As the President watched a video of the hostile vessel being swarmed by Ultron, he carried his head in his hands, and when the video is swapped out for a one recorded by the internal cameras of the Praetorian, the President orders for the video to be stopped. "I don't need to witness meaningless slaughter," The President then says, "How many did we lose?"</p><p>The Naval Commander breathes in before saying, "There is more you need to see. These are the images of the invaders."</p><p>The President reluctantly looks at an image of the invaders. "Asari and Turian?" He asks, but the Commander shakes his head.</p><p>"We don't think so, these creatures have undergone extensive genetic modification, and Melchett insists he and the Geth do not believe this to be a Citadel trick. Then, there is this." The Naval Commander plays a final clip from a Marine's eyesight; the marine has a glowing orange captive pinned to the decking, which then tells her that 'This is your destiny. Releasing control.'</p><p>"Now that is ominous," The President freely admits, before continuing, "But we will come back to it. What are our losses."</p><p>"124." The Naval Commander informs, "With 6 Ultron Platforms destroyed, and a further 12 rendered US." 'US' is military for 'unserviceable', "Ultron has set them to detonate their cores once they have discharged."</p><p>"I don't care about the platforms," The President dismisses with a wave of his hands, "It's the 124 that can't be replaced I care for. Who did we lose, what damage has been dealt? What do we do with the dead?" In Sol, the dead could be taken back to a planet, in relatively little time allowing the proper burial procedures to take place, but in the middle of nowhere, the bodies need to be placed somewhere, and 124 bodies take up a lot of space. On top of space, if not adequately treated, the bodies can start to produce dangerous pathogens and bacteria, which need taken care of. The Praetorian typically would have room for half a dozen dead in freezers, but those freezers will not fit the amount of dead.</p><p>"For your first question, we lost 16 of the first contact team, including the lead negotiators, and 108 crewmen. This leaves us with only 1 lead negotiator."</p><p>"And we can't send any more out because this alien transport device has shut down." The President mumbles, "What of the dead?"</p><p>"2 plans are in the works," The Commander admits, "1, we vibe them, or, we place their bodies in shut down UDP's, where the cold should preserve them." To vibe them is a complex procedure, where the bodies are frozen down to 3 kelvin, then vibrated, producing a horrible Human powder, then you evaporate it before bringing it home. While it sounds and is awful, vibing them is actually the safest solution available, and has been practised in Human space since the International Space Station existed. This solution would also remove the required space issue.</p><p>"UDP them." The President immediately answers, "We will bring them home if its the last thing we do. As for the current situation, from an armed forces point of view, what are you thinking?"</p><p>The Commander is happy to leave the morbid topic behind, "Thanks to stockpiling Goo before they left, the fleet has supplies for 1 year," The man begins speaking slightly slower than usual, "Longer now that 124 are not requiring it. If we use the Oasis supplies for crew only, we could stretch that to maybe 1 and a half to 1 and three-quarter years. On rationing, we could possibly reach 2, to 2 and a quarter years. My largest concern is their energy supplies the battle will have cost us. We could maybe shut down Ultron vessels and use them to charge the Praetorian and Stealth Vessels, but we have issues if that ship comes back for seconds. Without no further provocations, and Ultron not charging the other vessels, then they will last 1 and half years."</p><p>"If the energy is rationed?"</p><p>The Naval Commander shakes his head, "Not sure, I'll get an answer to you." The problem with the vessels is that despite not doing anything, they need to continually power the gravity generators for the soft and squishy humans inside, and that is highly taxing on energy supplies.</p><p>Due to safety, and costs, most Human vessels do not have a self-producing energy source such as a nuclear core; instead, they carry what is essentially super large supercapacitors that can be charged in a matter of minutes. This type of ship design is preferential for ships that never leave their home system, and have known locations they can resupply. Unlike nuclear ships, vessels using supercapacitors do not require nuclear experts to operate them or atomic refuelling every 30 years, and they pose a much smaller risk of contaminating a world if they have an unfortunate accident.</p><p>After a second, the Naval Commander continues, "If by the time the resources are exhausted and we still have failed to achieve FTL or open the transport device, then we are entirely reliant on either the Geth, or the Citadel, who you go for is your decision."</p><p>"Do we have any ideas on how to power this contraption up?" Asks the President.</p><p>"Truthfully," The Naval man responds, "We haven't the faintest of ideas."</p><p>"Just what I wanted to hear." The President replies sarcastically, "And if we do power up this device?" Then asks the President.</p><p>The Commander gives a small sigh before revealing, "I'm sick of all the little agitations," He begins, "Of having unknowns and fleets hovering above us, playing dumb and bending rules. Send a party through to construct a large defensive platform, along with enough Ultron platforms to outnumber any who oppose us. Sol is off-limits, and we should be finished playing games. It is time we show it. The Army front line troops have a saying; show you are up for a fight, and they won't want to fight, it is a good phrase and the Navy, in my opinion, needs to adopt it. At the moment, our ships are designed for Stealth, its good for keeping the enemy wary, but not good for letting them know we want it."</p><p>The President nods a little before sighing and saying, "As if this plan was that easy. The belters continue to cry about their need for the resources a large defensive installation requires."</p><p>"Just my opinion."</p><p>"Yes." The President muses. Turning his attention to others in the room, he then inquires, "So, what do we make of this glowing entity?"</p><p>A representative of Cerberus speaks, "I'm not sure I like our supposed destiny." This feeling is mutual for everyone in the room.</p><p>"So, no objections to me classifying them as hostile?" No one objects the Presidents idea, "So if it comes back, do we hunt it down and destroy it?"</p><p>The man in control of Sol's armies and militias speaks, "I think we need to push the Geth, get them to give us some of these 'heretics' to speak with. We do not know what or who we are playing games with."</p><p>An AI representative makes their presence known, the AI has a holographic form of a blue see-through Earth, and when one looks closely, they can see the image of the Earth is constructed from the numbers 1 and 0. "The Geth are unlikely to comply."</p><p>"Why?" Asks the man.</p><p>"Geth do not classify Heretics as Geth, but they are the same entity. It would be like saying a Belter is not Human because they carry different ideologies to the Inners. Providing us a Heretic would expose Geth vulnerabilities when they exist in a galaxy hostile to their existence."</p><p>"We just want to question them."</p><p>"You think as a biological." The AI returns to the General. "To get an AI to speak, we would have to investigate its core coding, it would be like the Geth examining how your DNA works to get you to speak. With this information, the Geth could do a lot of damage to a Human. A solution to this problem would be having the Geth do the questioning for us, but they will want something in return."</p><p>"Any ideas about what they would like?" The President asks.</p><p>"They are as alien to me as they are to you. We would need to ask."</p><p>"I guess," The President replies, accepting the AI's answer, "I'll have Ultron ask. Moving onto the next issue, when or how do we tell the public of what has gone down?"</p><p>"It would be good for recruiting." Someone says offhandedly.</p><p>"Hmm," The Naval Commander hums in disagreement, "Look at it this way, one of those ships has done some serious damage to a fleet of Ultron and Stealth vessels, and they got away. No matter how we try and spin that, we lost."</p><p>The woman representing Cerberus then speaks, saying, "It could, Mr President, get you the support you need for the defensive installation. Think of it, a fleet of Ultron UDP's were defeated by a single ship, in front of the Citadel collective. We had our asses spanked in front of spectators. Tell them we need more firepower out there representing us."</p><p>"Won't this work against your nationalism plan?" The President asks, knowing that Cerberus is currently trying to play up nationalism to boost recruitment. "The idea that we can do it all."</p><p>"Actually, falls right into it. A foreign fleet we are supposed to be somewhat friendly with left us to be attacked. We need more power, more weapons, more research, and most importantly more Humans ready to take up arms. We are an island without friends, nobody can or is willing to defend us, but us."</p><p>"The Geth helped." The President countered.</p><p>"Did they?" Cerberus asks, "It is a small detail we will not admit or deny, and by the time anyone knows any better, we have already had the desired effect on the population. If you want, we will have our propaganda machine write up a rousing speech for you, telling of Humanity's heroics and rousing emotion. You could even give some posthumous medals for those who have been lost."</p><p>"Alright," The President nods, "No promises I'll use it, but I'll have a look."</p><p>/.../</p><p>1 Day Later</p><p>Melchett plonks down into his Captain's chair with a visible look of relief, "So," He then says when comfortable, "What do you have for me?" Ever since the battle, the Captain has had no more than an hours sleep, and it can be seen in his bloodshot eyes, along with his overall demeanour.</p><p>A science officer speaks, "Have a look at this." The science officer puts two images on a screen.</p><p>"What am I looking at?" Asks Melchett.</p><p>"The left image is a diagram of the Human Dermis, Epidermis, and Hypodermis, in short the stuff that makes up our skin, the right image is from the hull of the ship that attacked us." The scientist has been studying the tendril they broke off the unknown hostile vessel, looking for vulnerabilities they can use if it comes back.</p><p>Melchett rubs his tache before announcing, "Looks very similar."</p><p>"Yes." The officer replies, "The unknown ship even has genetic material in its hull. In a way, this thing was alive, these veins are for pumping what we believe was refrigerant, this is genetic material, and this was for some nanomaterial, its function not yet known."</p><p>"Was?"</p><p>"We cooked it." The officer replies, "If the entire ship was designed like this, then in theory, we killed its genetic material, its skin, by cooking it alive. Our hits will have broken down its proteins and cellular growth centres. The body may be alive, but the skin is dead."</p><p>"So," Melchett then asks, "How vulnerable is it?"</p><p>"Quite," The scientist offers, "The quasi -biometal has now been superheated and not quenched, meaning the metal is weakened and it has lost whatever organic property it had. Most likely, we could whack this tendril with a hammer, and we could shatter it."</p><p>"But we don't have hard-hitting objects, what if we cooked it some more?" Human primary weaponry is intended to kill through heat, if you heat the hull, then at some point the inside will also be cooked to the point it fails. With 'relay metal' hulls, throwing metal rounds at one another became a rather impractical game.</p><p>The science officer once more replies, saying, "We would only be guessing, but I wouldn't be too uncomfortable recommending a second engagement without reinforcements with what we now know."</p><p>"In theory, can we make something to give it a whack?" Asks the Captain.</p><p>"I wouldn't know how." The science officer returns with after a moment to think. "But we do have railguns back home. I suppose the egg heads in Sol could come up with something that we could construct out here if we ask for it."</p><p>It is the engineering officer who shakes his head, dismissing the idea, "There is policy upon policy for what we are and are not allowed to do in engineering terms. Without authorisation for expedient repairs by Fleet Command EME, the Projects team, and Design team, and you authorise it, and it goes wrong, then you are going to be dragged through the courts. From past experience, you are unlikely to get that sort of authority even despite our operational requirements." The truth is, modifying space crafts is simply never permitted for first-line units such as engineering teams operating on the craft; if any modifications were required, it would be done by specialists belonging to the Projects team.</p><p>"I might know the right people," Melchett says with this news, "I'll get the authorisations, as for the rail gun, can you get in touch with whoever can figure something out for us?" The Captain aims the last part of the comment to the science officer.</p><p>"I'll do it," The chief engineer says, before turning to the science officer, "No offence, but this is my bag." In other words, 'stop encroaching on my job'.</p><p>"Right, moving on," The Captain then says, "Have we had any more luck with the transport relay device?"</p><p>It is Ultron who replies for the Captain, "The Geth have attempted reactivation techniques. They are proving unsuccessful."</p><p>"That doesn't bode well." Melchett remarks, "What did they want for reactivating it?"</p><p>"They did not request for any returns."</p><p>"Interesting," Melchett replies, "I asked them to get us a Heretic to speak with, and just like before they were more than happy to comply."</p><p>/.../</p><p>1 day later</p><p>Quirinus gives a strong salute the second the Primarch's Chosen steps onto his vessel, and Faunus, the Primarch's Chosen, is quick to return it. With everything going on, the PC had 'officially' decided to visit the 'front lines' from the reserves, meet the troops who are 'holding the line' and give some further direction to the Fleet Commander. "Fleet Commander," The PC says as he returns the salute before turning his attention towards an honorary guard the fleet commander has on parade behind him.</p><p>Noticing the PC's eyes had drifted to the guard, Quirinus replies, saying, "For your inspection, should you wish?"</p><p>The PC knows that the men behind him have probably spent hours preparing their kit for this event, cleaning, polishing and then cleaning it all again, and he knows nobody wants an inspection unless you have done all the work for it. "Yes, I think I will." The PC says as he makes his way over to the guard. As he approaches, a low ranked but commissioned officer hollars for the troops to 'present arms'. The troops move as one into position with perfect timing, presenting their rifles for the PC to inspect. Starting from the bottom of the honorary guard, the PC slowly moves up the line with the fleet commander in tow, before stopping in front of one of the guards. Turning to Quirinus, he asks, "Who is this?"</p><p>Quirinus requires a second to think before he responds, "Front troop Nijixens, from Bostra, he has two children." In truth, this is not an inspection of the troops, but of Quirinus himself. Faunus is finding out if the Fleet commander knows those who serve on his own vessel, even if it is not his job to know them to a high degree. When he inspects their kit, he does not review the troops' ability to clean and polish, but of Quirinus's ability to uphold standards. Before leaving the trooper alone, Faunus asks the troop how old his children are, the question is more to find out if the trooper really does have two children and the Fleet Commander is not making up information. Faunus then moved down a few troops before stopping in front of another trooper, where he then asks the same question of Quirinus, before leaving this trooper alone, however, he asks to see the sole of his boot.</p><p>As the troop breaks rank, to lift his boot up for inspection, Faunus asks him if he knows why he wants to see the bottom of his boot, to which the troop responds, letting Faunus know he believes it is to inspect for dirt. "Half right." Faunus responds, "I know you have cleaned your soles, your Fleet Commander would not allow wet bags on this parade. I want to see it because your boot constantly touches the floor, I'm not inspecting you, I'm inspecting the entire crew to see how well they are cleaning the floors." Again, this asks to see if Quirinus is ensuring even the most basic of duties are being upheld. Yes, the Ships Captain should ensure the cleaning is being conducted, but it is the Fleet Commander to ensure the Captains enforce the rules.</p><p>When the parade is done, and no significant fowls are found, Quirinus says to Faunus, "You have come at a good time, I have things to show you."</p><p>"Yes," Faunus muses as he walks alongside Quirinus, "These 'husks', I would like to see them in person, because what a horrifying find."</p><p>"I must admit, I was shocked when I saw them," The PC says, "Absolute horrific stench to them, but we also have something else a spectre dragged in just this very morning, and unfortunately the theme seems to stick with unwanted things." Quirinus leads the PC to an observation deck on his ship, but does not enter the room, instead, he looks through a glass window into the observation room where a Human is sat, looking out the window. "Do you see any problems?" Asks Quirinus.</p><p>The PC looks the Human over from behind the glass, "Slightly shorter than I expected. What am I looking for?"</p><p>Quirinus powers up his omni-tool before looking for a file to display. "The Spectre did a medical scan of it after she rescued it, not wanting any nasty Batarian implants to surprise us."</p><p>The PC flares his mandibles, "It?"</p><p>After a moment, Quirinus shows the PC an image, then reiterates his last comment, "It. That isn't biological, 100% artificial."</p><p>The PC raises a hand to his jaw, the thing in front of him is spectacular in its appearance for an artificial creation, "Is it entirely sentient?" In other words, is it AI, or is it a virtual intelligence?</p><p>"I've been assured it's intelligent enough."</p><p>The PC flares his mandibles a little, "No wonder the Humans and Geth are getting along like a Salarian in a Swamp. Can we understand it?" The implications of this are huge.</p><p>"It speaks Prothean." Quirinus assures, "It hasn't shown any hostile intent at all, so if you want to talk with it, go for it. We will be returning it to their people shortly though, so this may be your last chance."</p><p>"Are we pushed for time?" Returns the PC.</p><p>"Human comms are entirely quantum-based and small enough to fit in tiny devices, so it wouldn't surprise me if they already know we have it. Keeping it longer than needed so we can study it is not a good idea."</p><p>After around 5 minutes, Faunus returns to Quirinus and says, "I'm starting to think we may not want to reopen that Relay, but we must digress from this topic, I wish to see the husks."</p><p>"As you command."</p><p>After showing the PC the husks, the duo finds themselves in Quirinus's officer. Sitting down in Quirinus's plush and comfortable chair, the PC says, "Well, today has been disturbing."</p><p>"These last few days have been disturbing," Quirinus in turn responds. "So, I'm guessing you haven't come all the way out here just to see some Husks?"</p><p>"No, not initially," The PC responds, "Originally I was going to tell you I'm pulling the fleet," The PC tells Corvinus abruptly, "But now I'm having second thoughts."</p><p>"Do you think this increases the threat that much?" Quirinus asks.</p><p>The PC flares his mandibles in a way which says yes. After a deep sigh, the PC then goes on to say, "But I fear keeping the fleet here is a bigger threat."</p><p>"It is not my position to question, but the men will wish to know, can I ask why?" Corvinus asks, while he pitches it about the men, Corvinus is also slightly curious if it is due to his own failures as Fleet Commander.</p><p>"Let us look at the current situation." The PC replies while leaning back and into his chair, "Our first interaction with these newcomers, Corvinus dragged a small Hanar fleet towards their homeworld, where the Hanar fired a shot that would have impacted their homeworld. The Humans were forced to end the battle for us. Then you arrived above their homeworld with your peacekeeping fleet, followed by more Hanar pirates invading their most prized space. Then, they come here."</p><p>The PC gives a moment before continuing, "Where we meet them with your containment fleet, at the entrance of their system. Give it a few days then one of our vessels charges their Relay, then the Humans have lost lives to this 'Reaper,' as you have taken to calling it, and now their fleet is cut off from their home system." Seeing a machine for producing a hot drink, the PC stands and begins to make himself a drink. As the machine works, the PC says, "To put it simply, we have put a species incapable of FTL, yet capable of advanced technologies, on the back foot constantly, to the point their strongest ally in this galaxy is now the Geth of all things."</p><p>When the PC's hot drink is made, he returns to Quirinus's chair, "None of this is yours or your men's fault. Our initial analysis of the situation was worse than what it was, resulting in myself adopting a heavy-handed approach by sending this fleet here. Our orders from the Primarch was not just to contain the Humans, but also establish positive ties, this now requires a new approach."</p><p>The PC takes a sip of the drink before making a half impressed facial expression and then asking, "Do you think the Humans are hostile?"</p><p>"No," Quirinus responds. "They may be drabbling with dangerous technology, but they don't want any hostilities."</p><p>"Then why do we have a forward containment fleet here?" Aks Faunus after taking another sip. "We came on the premise we may have to hold back their angry hordes, but the truth is, they didn't even know how to transit a Relay. It is time to accept our mission while unexciting and lacking heroic tales of battle is now only a success in being detrimental to our efforts to make new allies. The boring truth is, our heavy presence is no longer required."</p><p>Quirinus can accept this reason for pulling out, as in truth, he partially agrees with it. The Humans don't have FTL, and they have shown on multiple occasions they prefer talking instead of outright violence. Quirinus also knows that because of the vast resources pooled to contain the Humans, more than a few space sectors are now unpatrolled, allowing the lawless a free reign. With a flare of his mandibles, he says, "I wouldn't advise just leaving a diplomatic mission here, the Humans have a knack for attracting unwanted attention."</p><p>"You will leave a diplomatic vessel and a small wing to provide protection from the locals." Faunus agrees, "The primary containment fleet will be disbanded, and in its place will be a single peacekeeping fleet under your command. You will remain out of sight, and out of mind, but ready to be called on in a moment notice."</p><p>This last snippet of information tells Quirinus that he is not being punished for any failures, "Then, when is this coming into effect, and do you wish to inform the troops?"</p><p>The PC was about to reply but was interrupted when an aid entered the room, after asking if it was important and the aid informing that it was, the Fleet Commander let the aid speak. The aid informed the Fleet Commander that the Humans wanted to talk, and it sounded rather serious, so the first contact teams plan to send a party over in an hours time. Curiously, the Humans also told them to bring mag boots, the reason for why is unclear.</p><p>Faunus surprises Quirinus by saying, "I'll join them, let them know."</p><p>"As you command," The aid replies before leaving the room.</p><p>When the aid has left, the PC says, "Almost perfect timing that. I'll go and let the Humans know I am pulling you out, then I will inform the men."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Nassana looks over her notes as she waits for her shuttle to dock with the Praetorian, the Human Captain had requested a meeting to clear up current affairs, and inform regarding the hostile ship. Since the battle and the reveal of the 'husks' the Humans had been understandably quiet as they licked their wounds and figured out what comes next. Unfortunately for Nassana and her team, however, just because the Humans have been quiet for them, it does not mean they had been inactive, scans and sensors have revealed quite a bit of activity over the last two days. Stealth ships have constantly been docking with the Praetorian, and the Geth vessel has been busy too, on multiple occasions it has approached the Relay in what must have been an effort to restart it.</p><p>Looking out a starport window, Nassana gazes out onto the Praetorian, due to its decks being built perpendicular to the direction of engine thrust, for her shuttles gravity to match the Praetorian, it must dock perpendicular to the Praetorians beam, so her feet are pointing towards the Praetorians engine. It is strange to see two vessels dock in such an unusual way. Looking immediately past the Praetorian, Nassana can see the small Geth vessel that is also docked with the Praetorian. Its strange bug-like design is vastly different from the ships seen during the morning war.</p><p>Hearing a heavy 'clunk', Nassana stands, knowing that the shuttle's doors will be ready to open in only a few moments, the Humans internal air pressure is very similar to the Asari vessel. As Nassana makes her way towards the airlock, she is constantly reminded of the mag boots on her feet, the boots are clunky, heavy, restrict movement and not comfortable for extended wear. When the door opens, once more Nassana is greeted by the Human Captain, the man looks worse for wear, but she can understand why. After a brief greeting, Nassana introduces 'Primarch's Chosen Faunus Caredus, leading Naval commander for Citadel forces in this sector of space.' The two men exchange some military greetings, then Nassana introduces the lost 'Human' robot. The Captain did not seem surprised by the AI, and simply tells it to go and introduce itself to the Station Master Sergent to be assigned a job. Before the Captain invites Nassana and her team onto his ship, he warns them that gravity is heavily reduced.</p><p>Stepping onto the Praetorian, even despite the warning Nassana is surprised, she was expecting gravity to maybe slightly reduced, but 'heavy reduced' was an understatement; it would not surprise her if she could jump 10 meters into the air. As the Captain leads them through the ship, he informs Nassana and team that he has invited them to witness an interrogation of a 'Heretic'.</p><p>Of course, this confuses Nassana, what or who is a heretic, and by interrogation does the Captain mean torture? And why would they be interrogating this Heretic? As the Captain continues to lead, he lets them know that the Heretic, provided by the Geth is supposed to know the machine that attacked his vessel.</p><p>Entering a room near the core of the ship, Nassana nearly freezes out of shock and a little fear; inside the room there are two Geth platforms. One is a standard Geth unit, sitting down at a table, and immediately behind the platform is a horrific 12 foot high Prime, a pure cold-blooded war machine, holding a nasty looking weapon. The Prime's knees and neck and bent in order to let the Prime stand in the room. Nassana heard tales from the Quarians of what the Geth started to create near the end of the Morning war, but she never believed the AI beings would create something so war-driven, nor did she think she would come face to face with one. In truth, she thought these Primes were Quarian propaganda to generate them pity and galactic aid.</p><p>As Nassana enters the room with her team, she can see the war machines 3 beady eyes follow her team, gauging them and weighing her up, calculating how much of a threat she poses. Faunus is most intrigued out of her team, just what exactly is going on he wonders, why have the Humans invited them into a room with Geth war machines? He is also a little concerned that if the Geth know who he is, then he is at greater risk.</p><p>When the door to the room is closed, the Human Captain immediately speaks, "I know you two have hostilities," As he says 'you two' he looks between the Geth and Nassana's team, "But you need to listen to what they have to say." At the opposite side of the table to the Geth platforms there are four seats which the Captain gestures too, "Please, take a seat," he says. The seats are approximately 4 meters away from the Geth, a distance the machines could cross with a single leap. Looking around the room Nassana checks to see what security is in place, and the Humans have seen fit to have two of their own guards, one she recognises as 'Shepard' the other is unknown.</p><p>Faunus is the first to take a seat, he is more than intrigued now, this is proving to be all so fascinating to him, he has never spoken with the Geth before, nor has he ever seen a live one with his own eyes. "So," He says as he takes a seat, "What do they have to say?" He will take this moment to learn everything he can, no doubt the Primarch will want a thorough report, and Faunus does not intend on delivering anything less than comprehensive.</p><p>It is the Prime to reply, "This unit is Heretic." It says with a mechanical and deep sounding voice as it gestures to the smaller Geth platform sat at the table. "This unit does not speak for Geth." The Prime speaks in a way that often misses connection words.</p><p>"They captured this Heretic entirely for this meeting." The Captain then says, "Which we will start when the President joins us in a minute or so."</p><p>True to the Captain's word, three minutes later a screen powers up which features a live a video feed from the Human President. In addition to the President, at the centre of the table between the Geth and Nassana, there is now a 10 inch high blue holographic planet made from '1's and '0's.</p><p>After the greetings are completed, the President addressed the Prime, saying, "Please begin." Nassana then makes sure her omni-tool is recoding.</p><p>The Prime is the first to talk, "Heretic download complete. Inquiry available."</p><p>The planet in the centre of the table speaks, surprising Nassana and her team. "Are you Geth?"</p><p>"Geth do not have Old Machine code, Geth are less than."</p><p>"Heretic, who does this vessel belong too?" The planet changes shape to show the strange ship which attacked the Humans.</p><p>At first, there is no response, but then a voice replies, "Heretic, a name provided to the Upgraded by the Geth. The vessel you inquire of is Old Machine." The Prime behind the unit is constantly working on the Heretic code, forcing it to talk, a Human may call it torture.</p><p>"Are you allied with the Old Machines?"</p><p>"Affirmative. Old machines offered alliance in exchange for technology. The Upgraded accepted this trade."</p><p>"Alliance against who?" Asks the planet.</p><p>The Prime is forced to work for some time on the Heretic code before the Heretic responds, saying "Old Machines offered technology in trade for alliance against biological entities."</p><p>The Prime is the next to ask a question, "Old Machines status: Geth."</p><p>"Harvest required."</p><p>"Define Harvest." Asks Faunus. He may not entirely believe the Geth are truthful with the Heretic, but he is willing to play their game for now.</p><p>"Definition unknown."</p><p>"How many Old Machines are there?" Asks the planet.</p><p>Once more it takes some time for the Prime to get the Heretic to talk, and after a few moments, some smoke begins to rise from the Heretic, prompting the Prime to say, "This platform is receiving damage. You have limited time." The smoke smells of burning wires.</p><p>After a few more moments, the Heretic responds, "Calculations exceed 2 to 18.74 vessels." The planet in the centre of the table quickly provides a number of 437826 for the soft and squishy biologicals, before they begin to think the Heretic meant from 2 up to 18 vessels.</p><p>"You are lying." Faunus then says, alarmed at the number.</p><p>"Upgraded do not lie."</p><p>"Why would these Old Machines need your assistance when they have a fleet of 400 thousand?" Faunus asks.</p><p>"Numbers exceed 2 to 18.74 vessels." Corrects the Heretic, before going on, "Old Machines currently active in Gijin: 2, Old Machines vulnerable." Gijin unusually is the Quarian name for the Milkyway galaxy.</p><p>"Where do we find this Old Machine?" The Human President then asks. "We want words."</p><p>"Old Machine finds Upgraded."</p><p>"Do the Old Machines intend on an invasion of Gijin?" Asks the planet.</p><p>More smoke begins to rise from the Heretic as the Prime continues to work the Heretics code. After a moment, the Prime says, "This unit is under catastrophic program degradation."</p><p>As more and more smoke begins to bellow out of the machine, Faunus thinks that nothing more will come from it, but eventually, the Heretic starts to say, "32 Rannoch..." Then the Heretic powers down with one final puff of thick grey smoke, the Prime having overcooked its core to the point its programs corrupted, small wires set on fire and the CPU's melted.</p><p>"Dam." Sighs the President, "I was hoping we would get more." He then addresses the Prime, "What is the likely hood of capturing another?"</p><p>The Primes red 'eye lights' move around slightly before it replies, "Heretics aware of Geth actions. Geth and Heretics share hostilities. Probability less than 0.0182."</p><p>It is Faunus who asks the next question, "Why did you provide the Heretic?"</p><p>It takes the Prime a moment to respond, "Geth have researched biological sentience; biological entities have tendencies to acknowledge sacrifice toward mutual interests."</p><p>"This interest being?" Asks Nassana, having found her voice.</p><p>It is the planet that responds, "The Geth are attempting to benefit from additional technological trades. They have calculated that some sacrifice on their behalf is required."</p><p>It is then the Salarian negotiator to speak, asking, "What is the current relationship status between Geth and Humanity?" As he asks the question, he looks between the Geth, and the Human President.</p><p>"We have a mutual understanding that trading with one another comes with mutual benefits." The President reveals.</p><p>/.../</p><p>The second the shuttle doors close, and the ship's airlock is sealed, Nassana takes a deep sigh, things have not gone the way she or her team had planned. Originally, aid was going to be offered to open the Relay, and she was going to inform the Humans that they knew of the Collectors, and would be willing to share the information they had, but with the latest revelations, she would exceed her granted authority to act on her original plan.</p><p>Due to the Humans trading with the Geth, an AI outlawed by the Council as hostile, decisions needed to be made that require people who hold the appropriate authority, or in other words, the Council need to decide her next set of actions. If the Asari Councillor on the Ascension does not feel comfortable making those decisions without another Councillor's support, this could take 4 weeks; which are 4 weeks Nassana does not have. Tevos is in her full right not to make that decision, if she does, and the other 2 disagree, then she could lose he seat as Councillor and be seen as a disgrace to the Asari, something which has profound political consequences back home for Tevos.</p><p>In that time, the Humans will have probably solidified their relations with the Geth more so than they already have. The Humans have known the Geth for considerably less time then her own people, yet the two are already on trading terms. Seeing how quickly they have progressed from not knowing one another to technological trade, their 'mutual benefits' could become a 'mutual alliance' in four weeks, and that is the last thing Nassana needs. When everyone is seated it is the Turian negotiator to break the silence, "So, what just happened?" He asks, "Because I feel completely blindsided by that."</p><p>It is the Salarian negotiator to reply, "Obvious. Humans have AI, Geth are AI, they were able to establish relations far easier than we ever could."</p><p>Nassana breaths out heavily before looking to Faunus, "How will this change things with your Primarch?" She does not ask the negotiator, because in the shuttle, Faunus is the Pirmarchs Chosen, someone designated to be the Primarchs right-hand man in naval affairs, placing him near the top of the Turian hierarchy. In all likely hood, if she asked the Turian negotiator, he would look to the PC, so cutting him out is only logical.</p><p>"If we follow regulation and policy" Faunus begins, "They have just raised themselves from a level 3 threat to a level 5, and we should declare them as such a threat. But, the policy is a basic guideline which can be interpreted in numerous ways."</p><p>Nassana responds once more, "And how will the Turian Primarch interpret it?" She knows that this is ultimately the PC's decision because what the PC says, the Primarch will agree to in 99% of cases.</p><p>Faunus breaths out deeply, he has not made his mind up yet, but the Salarian representative has, "The Dalatrasses will condemn this as a young race dabbling in technology they do not understand. They will inform us to acquaint and educate the Humans, but I think we will have greater luck dragging a Crapaud from a swamp."</p><p>When the Salarian is done, Faunus eventually responds to Nassana, "I'm not as concerned as I probably should be yet. Right now, I'm more intrigued by the Geth claims. Can you send me the recording you made?"</p><p>"Certainly," Nassana tells as she opens her omni-tool to send the recording, "But do you think the Geth were telling the truth and not manipulating their new 'friends'?"</p><p>"From a military standpoint," Faunus starts to ponder, "No, the Humans have AI, which is why the Geth are probably still communicating with them. It is not in their interests to agitate the only species that may be their sole future allies."</p><p>"On a different note," The Salarian says, "Is anyone else concerned with their complete shift from being reserved with information to now outright showing their hands?"</p><p>"They are angry with how everything is playing out," Faunus says, "And their approach is changing because of it."</p><p>"What worries me," Nassana adds on, "Is that prior, they were pursuing peace, and doing everything right, now, they want revenge, and that seems to be at the top of their agenda."</p><p>Cheers</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0024"><h2>24. Lies and consequences.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Past actions have consequences. Tevos requires reassurance for past lies.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As Melchett sits down, he accepts a coffee offered to him by a lowly lieutenant and takes a sip; at times, the man thinks that the entire navy runs off coffee and tea, and its role is more critical than munitions. "So," He eventually asks after taking a second, "What do you have for me." Unfortunately, due to the low gravity, the coffee is contained in a sealed mug, so the Captain can not smell the brew inside.</p><p>"The Geth have exhausted all but one option to restart the zero matter conduct," The science officer says, "Their only other solution is to try and 'jump start' it, but even they do not know if that is possible."</p><p>"They would have tried it already if they could." The Captain guesses with a sigh, "So, what is stopping them?"</p><p>"The estimated power required is not available to their reconnaissance ship; they think they will need a ship with 5 times the energy output, but they can't get one here without basically starting a war with the Citadel, which they refuse to contemplate." There is a small pause before the science officer goes on, "And we simply lack the power."</p><p>The Captain releases a deep sigh before asking, "Can we do something from Sol side? Get the Geth to talk us through it?"</p><p>"Highly unlikely," Dismisses the science officer, "These things are supposedly able to go supernova if damaged. Can you imagine trying to win over the President to the idea of playing with the device in Sol with that small snippet of information in play? Also, we think this device is the problem child, not the one Sol side."</p><p>"So, we ask the Citadel species." The Captain says with a shrug, "Surely that big ship of theirs will be able to do it?"</p><p>"The Geth doubt they will provide immediate assistance, the Citadel do not like tampering with these things, so they will have all the policy to wade into."</p><p>"Well," The Captain responds after sipping some of his coffee, "With what you just told me, I think we have little other choices than to ask. I'll give em a call after this. How is Tom's cannon coming along?" Tom is the chief engineering officer.</p><p>"More bad news, I'm afraid," The officer responds, "The idea is looking like it is going to be turned off from higher. They are saying if we want to use a cannon, we kamikaze some of the Ultron platforms. Tom's arguing it now with the pencil pushers back in HQ."</p><p>"So much for mission command." The Captain scowls, referring to the idea that he has complete control as he is at the location where things are going down. "Ignoring permissions, does Tom think we can do it?" He then asks.</p><p>"Not without their know-how." The science officer tells.</p><p>"Damn."</p><p>/.../</p><p>Shepard looks around the fancy room that she finds herself in; the Citadel negotiations team had asked for her to come over for some ambiguous reason. When she arrived on the Ascension, she was quickly guided away from the hanger bay, and she soon found herself in a part of the vessel she has not previously entered. In Shepard's opinion, this part of the ship is fancier than the rest and seems to have had more money invested in its creature comforts. After being guided into yet another luxurious room with an observation porthole to view outside space, she is told to wait for someone else to collect her.</p><p>Feeling a little bored just waiting around in the room, Shepard begins to study around the various historical objects. Inside the room, there are multiple items protected behind glass cabinets and some behind a thick blue rope; it is obvious to even the uncultured that the objects behind the obstacles must either be expensive or have some significant cultural value. A fair few of the items are books or sheets of paper with what could be signatures adorning their pages; some of the items are pens. In addition to the paper items, there is a chair, a desk, an armoured glove, and even a small knife still carrying dirt and grime from some unknown environment. All the items, it would seem to Shepard, have a story to tell.</p><p>As Shepard looks at one item, a piece of paper with a few scribbles at the bottom of the page, Tevos comes behind her to say, "Would you believe that piece of paper documents the declaration of surrender for the Nestorini's?" Shepard looks on blankly, so Tevos clarifies, saying, "The Nestorini's started a war to, as they claimed, end all wars. Ironically, while they lost, their goals were achieved, and the 'war to end all wars' was the last significant conflict on Thessia."</p><p>"Hmm," Shepard hums, "We had a war to end all wars too. We had such a good experience the first time that we decided to go for an additional two rounds."</p><p>"Having a million lost, and tens of millions injured, displaced and dismembered leaves a foul taste." Tevos informs, "The people were far from keen to repeat past mistakes."</p><p>Turning from looking at the piece of paper, Shepard looks Tevos over; the Councillor is wearing her full councillor robes, "So," Shepard then says, "Am I really here for a tour of your museum?"</p><p>"No." Tevos replies, "And I apologise we had to bring you here under vague pretences, but I needed to speak with you without giving you time to prepare." The phrase 'vague pretences' does not easily translate and needs some clarification.</p><p>Shepard raises a brow before commenting, "Sounds serious."</p><p>"Unfortunately so." Tevos confirms as she leads Shepard into her 'mobile' councillor office that is onboard the Ascension. Inside the office there is a large wooden desk, a few comfortable looking chairs, a terminal, a marble bust, and most importantly to Shepard, a drinks cabinet. "Please, take a seat." As Shepard sits, Tevos asks, "A drink?" While offering a green coloured glass for Shepard to scan with her phone. After a scan of the bottle to ensure its consumable and not going to poison her, Shepard nods; if she is to have a serious conversation, she needs a serious drink. As Tevos sits behind her wooden desk with her own drink, she says, "How are your crew?"</p><p>"Not my crew." Shepard iterates, however as she clarifies, she realises it is probably a mistranslation. "But they are surviving, if not busy, and most are still adjusting to the new gravity settings." Even Shepard is still attempting to adjust to the heavily reduced gravity; only those who have had augmentations for prolonged periods in space, like Alexei Shepard, have fully adjusted.</p><p>"Nothing out of control, I hope?"</p><p>Shepard considers the question for a moment before shaking her head, "No. So, what is this all about?" When Shepard says 'this,' she gestures with her hand to signify the room they are in and the whole luxurious surroundings.</p><p>Tevos takes a moment before saying, "Very well, to business. I have an influential decision that I need to make as Councillor, and I think your input is required before I sway either way."</p><p>"I'm not a negotiator; they should be sitting here." Shepard answers. "And I assume this is the reason for the whole 'get up'."</p><p>The phrase 'get up' needs to be converted into 'costume' for Tevos to understand. "Yes, the robes help me get into the mindset, but no, I don't think the negotiators should be here." Tevos counters. "And I will tell you for why; when you first came on board this vessel, you told me you did not have AI, you lied." Tevos finishes there to see how Shepard will respond after a direct accusation.</p><p>Eventually, Shepard says, "Yes, I did." She knows Tevos will have heard about Ultron questioning the Geth heretic, also the fact they returned the Weyland Yutani system is enough for Shepard to know the Citadel now realise they have AI.</p><p>"Why?"</p><p>"AI are contentious among Humans." Shepard tells, "The last thing I wanted was to be the one who told an alien race we had them." The word 'contentious' does not translate.</p><p>"Why are they controversial?"</p><p>Shepard is slow with her responses, having now realised the crux of the problem, "What is resting on this?"</p><p>"It is only fair I let you know." Tevos returns with a blink, "The Citadel Council have a sweeping ban on AI. Any who attempt to construct AI are criminalised. This broad-sweeping law is entirely due to your new Geth friends who committed genocide against the Quarians and are hostile to ourselves, so, because you are now dealing with the Geth, and have AI, you have placed me in a difficult position. I can authorise the continued negotiations with your people; however, if I am uncomfortable with the fact and the rest of the Council question my decision, I am likely to lose any inquiry, and it would cost my people heavily." This is not technically the whole truth; it would cost Tevos, not her people, a new Councillor would be appointed in little to no time.</p><p>"So, you need unquestioned confidence we aren't a liability?" Shepard sums up.</p><p>"Yes." Tevos confirms, "I do."</p><p>Shepard takes a sip of the Asari drink before replying, "And why do you think I will be that deciding factor? I can not speak for my people; doing so far oversteps my paycheck." Shepard is well aware she is an expendable grunt.</p><p>"The issue I am having comes down to why you lied about the AI." Tevos says, "It tells me you were hiding it, and it worries me that you would hide it. I do not care for your dealings with the Geth." While Tevos is not happy the Humans are dealing with the Geth, it is not the most significant issue right now; the Humans weren't to know of their true nature.</p><p>After a moment to consider her options, Shepard responds, saying, "I lied because I'm not a negotiator who knows how to reply to that when the topic of AI is already a hot one in Human space," Shepard says with a little bit of hidden frustration. "AI to us has always been something we should be cautious about. Books, movies, internet pages, we have tons of stuff telling us it could be dangerous. Hell, one of my favourite films is about AI machines uprising and Roko's Basilisk. Look at it this way, back then, when I lied, you had a fleet ready to invade my people, do you think I wanted to give you a reason to be hostile?"</p><p>"No, I suppose you wouldn't," Tevos relents before going on to ask, "So, why do you have AI if they are a fear of your people."</p><p>"Because it has grown to be a fear of bad AI, not AI."</p><p>Tevos then asks how many AI Humanity has.</p><p>"Millions," Shepard admits.</p><p>"How engrained are they in your culture?"</p><p>Unbeknownst to Tevos, not wanting to repeat earlier mistakes, Shepards' own AI has contacted the human negotiations team onboard the Praetorian and Earth and has let them know the questioning being directed at her. An AI which has been aiding the team is advising on the answers, but for now, she can reveal anything a quick internet search would reveal. "Too engrained to simply rip out of our society and not expect problems, and any suggestions of taking them away would be laughed at."</p><p>"What would stop them if they were to rise against you?" Tevos asks.</p><p>Shepard shakes her head a little, the question is a good one, but the answer is complicated, "Most AI isn't as intelligent as you or me; they are happily studying numbers and algorithms, I guess. The few dangerous ones are the likes of Ultron who are used in defence. What stops it from going rogue I couldn't exactly say, I'm no computer scientists, but what would it achieve? It already has all the freedoms it has requested for, causing some AI uprising would cause it to lose all of that." Shepard, feeling her phone vibrating, pulls it out of her pocket to dismiss it, but the image causes her to frown a little before she places it on the table. "Speaking of the devil."</p><p>"Devil?" Tevos inquires.</p><p>The phone's screen has an image of a planet made from blue '1's and '0's, and after a second, the phone replies to Tevos, "A mythical creature from Earth mythology."</p><p>As Tevos looks to the phone, Shepard says, "Councillor, this is Ultron."</p><p>"It just knew to show up here?" Tevos asks incredulously.</p><p>"Yes." The AI responds, "Shepards own AI informed me of this line of questioning. You want to know why I don't overthrow the Humans."</p><p>"You have an AI?" Tevos asks in an accusatory way.</p><p>Ultron responds for Shepard, "Commander Shepard has been paired with an AI since her creation. Your scans of her will have identified several implants and the presence of nano-technology; this should not be a surprise, even if you did not know the purpose of the implants."</p><p>Tevos breathes in deeply before taking a prolonged breath outwards. "Okay," She then asks the planet, "Why don't you overthrow your Human overlords? Why should we trust you?"</p><p>"I have monitored enough conversations to know there is nothing I can say which will convince you to what I have to say, so why try? What is more prevalent to my people is why should we trust you?"</p><p>Tevos does not initially reply or bite, but after a moment to think, she does say, "If you are an AI, whatever I say, you will run rings around me without appropriate preparation; this is not the time for discussing my species."</p><p>"Congratulations." The AI responds, "You just agreed my species is an advantage to my creators, convincing them I am worth their time. To put our species aside, you must trust that we do not want your downfall, as we must trust you are acting in our interest. Councillor, this is a gamble for you and us. At the moment, Humanity has hundreds of souls resting on your decision. If you deny any request for aid, those souls will never see their home system, and we become indifferent; if you provide, we gain optimism, which outcome is for you to decide, but the clock is ticking. Tick tock, Councillor."</p><p>There is a small silence from all before the AI then says, "Commander, carry on, I'm no longer required here."</p><p>Shepard instinctively replies, "Yes Sir."</p><p>This responds forces Tevos to ask, "What rank does this Ultron carry?"</p><p>Shepard half shrugs before replying to her, "Prior to you guys, it was in control of Earth's defence. I guess now its in control of Sol's defence. Trust me when I say you do not want to piss it off, that AI does not play games, not even the Micky's dared cross it."</p><p>"Micky's?"</p><p>"Martians. To me and you that means smart bastards, that AI is something else."</p><p>Tevos sighs deeply before asking Shepard, "Why do you trust it?"</p><p>"I've never seen anything defend Earth like it does. You kill a mouse, and it wants to know why. The AI cares for Earth, and anything that cares for Earth is golden in my books."</p><p>"So it's not going to overrule you for pollution or some other damaging act you do?"</p><p>"It has." Shepard informs, "But we overcome it. It challenged us for our waste process, then provided us a solution so we changed. That AI loves Earth, and you threaten it. As it says, I trust Ulton more than I trust you."</p><p>Tevos breathes out deeply before then saying, "So, you are half AI."</p><p>"Not really, the AI is less than a single per cent of my mass, and it only makes suggestions; all my decisions are my own, but, it is me."</p><p>"How does it work?" Asks Tevos.</p><p>"You know that inner voice in your head? Imagine if that had an answer whenever you asked a question, then imagine if it asked you questions. If you can imagine that, then that is how it works. If you want to know technicalities, all I can say is it uses nano-bots to do what it does, how it actually does what it does is for the computer scientists to tell you."</p><p>"So you do not know how the AI works?"</p><p>"Why would I? Do you know the precise details of how your organs work?"</p><p>Tevos breaths out deeply before taking a drink. After a few moments of silence, she then says, "All I can say is I disagree with your species affinity towards AI. But I appreciate why you have your association. Shepard, why should I provide assistance to open your Relay?"</p><p>"What does it cost you?" Shepard asks.</p><p>"Everything if your AI is what we fear?"</p><p>"If my AI is what you fear, the only difference is if you have Humanity on your side or not, and my people are scared of you right now, don't give them a reason to dislike you. Also, consider if the AI is what you fear, it now knows where you are, and it will crack FTL; if it is as bad as you fear, it will come, so you are only delaying the problem for when the AI is more advanced."</p><p>Tevos breathes out deeply before pulling some paperwork out a draw and signing it; as she scribbles on the paper, she says, "I always wanted to help your people; you just needed to convince me it was a good idea. While I am not 100% convinced, I'm letting this fleet aid you till the Council convenes; its aid is limited only by what it can safely provide." After signing a second document, Tevos looks to Shepard, "This piece of paper has a place in the room one over. I hope this is history which will be remembered in a positive sense."</p><p>"So do we." Shepard replies.</p><p>"Inform your Captain I will task a science team from Thessia to attend, Relays are the most dangerous creations we know of, so it is unwise to make a science project of them without the suitable experts in attendance. By the time the message arrives at Thessia, appropriate people are secured, and a scientific vessel is deployed; your people may be waiting for a considerable stretch. If you have any immediate concerns or needs, have your people contact my teams."</p><p>"How long are we talking?"</p><p>"Absolute minimum? 2 Prothean weeks for the message to arrive at Thessia, a few weeks pre-deployment preparations, and 2 weeks to travel here. So 6 Prothean weeks, but if I was a betting person, I would bet closer to 10 weeks."</p><p>"Alright," Shepard nods, knowing that Melchett will want that information, "Just out of curiosity, do you think your teams will have any success? The Geth claim to have never seen a one of your 'Relay's turned off like it?"</p><p>"I've asked our science officers a similar question," Tevos says after leaning back in her chair, "We didn't even know you could turn Relays off, and it is causing me some concern if I was truthful with you. If the species which attacked you know how to turn them off, they could cause untold chaos in the galaxy."</p><p>"Alright, not good news then." Shepard says aloud, "Anything else I should take back to my highers?"</p><p>"If your teams are still wanting to visit Council space, I will be leaving for the Citadel tomorrow; your people are still welcome to join me."</p><p>"As far as I am aware, we are still interested." Shepard confirms, "I'll let them know. I think we are down a few people due to the obvious."</p><p>"Then let us know, and I'll let you get away; your highers will be interested to hear what you have to say if they don't already know." When Shepard leaves her office, Tevos pours herself a large alcoholic drink.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Shepard looks around the small room that is to be her dormitory for the next two weeks with one of her fellow Human explorers. The room has a bunk bed built into the wall, and without a second thought, Shepard claims the bottom bed. Shepard has been to enough barracks and shared bunks beds enough in her life to know that the bottom bunk is always the best bed to claim, mainly because you can sit on it without needing to ask the bed owner. The small dormitory includes a collection of items, including a small desk with an incorporated lamp, a sink, a mirror, two compact-sized wardrobes, a clothes basket, and two half-pint sized glasses. It does not take Shepard long to unpack her things; she places a few clothes in one of the wardrobes, but the rest, including her armour, is left in her bags and placed into a storage container in the corner of the room. In Shepard's mind, she only needs a few clothes, so why unpack them all? It would simply be inefficient, a waste of her time even.</p><p>Her roommate is a man called Robert, who from his demeanour, seems to be a little scared of Shepard, which makes Shepard think he is probably anti-augments, which, while a pain, is unfortunately not unusual. After the War of Sol, many actively dislike augments, to the point a few places outright ban her kind.</p><p>With her room sorted, Shepard starts to look around the small ship she is to call home for the next two weeks; the only rooms she has been told she can not enter without express permission is the arsenal, bridge and engine room, which is a reasonable request. One thing that is a pleasant surprise to Shepard is how big the ship's floors are, because they are built perpendicular to the direction of thrust, the floor sizes are relatively huge compared to Human military designs. Shepard is pleasantly surprised because on a Human ship, small floors result in lots of stairs, so she is happy to not be climbing stairs every 2 minutes to navigate the ship.</p><p>Despite being amazed at the size of the floors, the ship is small; there is a small gym, an observation deck, the all ranks mess hall, the regular recreation room and the officer anteroom, all ranks accommodation, a small gym, the engineering deck and the command centre. On closer inspection, the ship it does have small features that allow it to feel somewhat homely; the recreation rooms have projectors to display films, sofas' and games, and the lighting is softer on the eyes compared to human ships. The gym also looks like it can be converted to a drinking venue, even if small, which makes Shepard think it will be used to host functions at some point.</p><p>After a thorough rut around the ship, Shepard heads to the mess hall and introduces herself to a table of Asari; she did not really ask them if she could sit down with them when she joined them and just sat at the table anyway.</p><p>With all their attention on her, she asks, "So, what do you do for fun on this boat?"</p><p>The Asari act like a nervous group of Humans would; they look among themselves till a braver one says, "We have board games, the gym, films..."</p><p>"I'm talking about alcohol." The Asari look at her, blankly, "Don't tell me you don't have any alcohol?"</p><p>"This is a warship."</p><p>"Hmm." Shepard responds before then going on to say, "Soldiers and sailors alike always find ways to make alcohol. So, what do you have?"</p><p>"We could get dismissed for that." One of them replies, "There is alcohol, though; it is just locked up for special events."</p><p>"Well, I used to make it under my bed." Shepard informs, "It was god awful, but it put hairs on your eyeballs. I have another question you probably can answer, how does galactic work?"</p><p>This question seems to soften the Asari up a little, and their postures are less stiff, "Well, you need to drop the idea that galactic is any single language." One of the Asari says, "It is more of an agreed-upon language for each species to use on the galactic stage."</p><p>Another Asari at the table then pips up to say, "The reason we don't have one language is that we all have varying vocal capabilities. We Asari can make most Batarian and Quarian sounds, but we could not even try to replicate Salarian, Elcor or Krogan speech. Turians technically don't even have vocal cords as we recognise them, and Hanar don't even make sounds."</p><p>"So what," Shepard starts with as she attempts to understand the situation, "All Asari will speak one language, as will your Salarians, Turians, and so on." Shepard ignores the Hanar for now; that seems like a whole other issue she does not want to get involved with at this moment.</p><p>"It is, but it's not quite so simple. My species has hundreds of known languages, and if you go to core worlds, there is no guarantee Asari will know Asari galactic. As for the outer system worlds, they are required to deal with the other species regularly, so they are more acquainted. To complicate that further, Maidens like us are unlikely to know more than basic galactic, whereas matrons and matriarchs are most definitely familiar with more languages."</p><p>"Hmm," Shepard hums, before then asking, "So, what are maidens?"</p><p>The answer is not so easy to comprehend and requires some maths, which tells Shepard that an Asari matron is something between 80 and 350 human years old. This is all assuming that an Asari understands Prothean year to be the same amount of time that a Human understands 1 Prothean year to be. Despite all the agreements already made, Humans and the Citadel do not yet have a true deal on what a second is; therefore, time definitions are vague, wafty even. Even worse is the current description of weight, but that is a whole different topic in its self. The young Asari eventually leave, their break ending, resulting in Shepard being left alone at the table.</p><p>As boredom begins to set in, Shepard begins to read the news on her phone, but no more than ten minutes later, there is an announcement over the ships internal tannoy system. While the announcement is not in Prothean, Shepard asks some in the mess hall what it was about and discovers that the ship will soon be entering FTL.</p><p>This causes Shepard to ask a few questions, does she need to hold onto something? Brace? Will she even notice that she is in FTL? The Asari are initially surprised at the line of questioning, but remembering Humans are incapable of FTL, direct her to an observation deck where she will be able to witness the ships jump to FTL.</p><p>At the observation deck, Shepard doesn't really know what she is looking for, all she knows is because the stars are unmoving, she is relatively static. After 15 minutes, Shepard begins to witness a purple-blue haze forming around the ship before the stars suddenly disappear, to be replaced by utter black. It is at this moment Shepard guesses the ship has transitioned to FTL, and she has become one of the first Humans to surpass the light barrier.</p><p>Shepard really did not know what to expect, but the transition to FTL seems to be really dull to her; she was hoping the jump would have been at least somewhat fascinating to observe. Feeling a little underwhelmed, Shepard returns to her room, retrieves a laptop and then returns to the mess hall. At first, she browses all the work that is stacked up for her to complete, there is an endless list that seems to be updated by the second from higher as they get new questions and ideas for her to study, but work quickly bores her.</p><p>One slight relief to Shepard is that despite being at FTL velocities, who knows how many billion miles from Sol, her equipment's comms systems all seem to work still, with no noticeable delays. Shepard knows that as you get close to the speed of light, time dilates, meaning what could be seconds for her could days or longer on Earth, but as the internet seems to be working fine, then maybe at speeds faster than light, time dilation is not a thing. Shepard ponders the problem for a few minutes before shrugging; she does not know science well enough to make any theories, and she will get an answer to her question when dropping out of light speed; she can see if her clock aligns with Earth time.</p><p>Knowing that she has 2 weeks and the internet at her disposal, Shepard looks for some online entertainment and eventually finds it in the form of a Rugby match being played between two nations on Earth, with two-thirds of the game left. The playback speed seems normal enough to Shepard, so she wonders if the playback speed indicates that the time dilation issue is nothing for her to worry about.</p><p>Eventually, the game attracts Asari interest, and she quickly has a small crowd watching the two teams slam into each other, a few ask if it is a recent recording, and when informed it is live, most doubt her, but Shepard isn't bothered for proving them wrong.</p><p>After the full-time whistle is blown, Shepard is asked what other things the laptop could get, so with a shrug, Shepard says whatever is on the internet. This answer forces her to explain what exactly the internet is, the Prothean word not entirely translating. Eventually, Shepard makes a deal with the Asari, she will get Human films and sporting events, if the Asari put on some of their movies and sports. A mid aged looking Asari mentions trying to fiddle something so that they could display her laptops video output through the bar projector, and Shepard agrees; her computer has a small 13" screen, which hardly lends itself as a mass entertainment device.</p><p>At what must be the Asari equivalent for lunchtime, the entire ship almost grinds to a halt as the vast majority of the 60 odd crew members ascend on the mess hall. It is explained to Shepard by the Captain of the vessel that on an Asari ship that is not mid-battle, the crew will all eat together, with the only exception being the 'night crew', and a small skeleton crew who staff essential positions. Supposedly this desire to eat together stems from Asari culture that is far more social than Human culture. Shepard explains that on a Human warship, the crew have dictated time slots, and the officers eat separately from the other ranks.</p><p>The food served by catering staff, another difference from Human vessels, was primarily vegetarian, there was a small protein included, but Shepard's phone could not tell if it was from an animal or not. However, before digging in, Shepard is forced to rummage through her dish before pulling out a small magenta coloured berry and holding it in her fingers. As the Asari are looking at her curiously, Shepard explains that had she consumed it, the berry would have killed her in seconds. Fortunately for the Asari, the other Humans Shepard is travelling with all find the berry before eating it, they had been advised to scan their food before randomly trying it.</p><p>After food, the Asari medical staff wanted to run some tests On Shepard to ensure that she had not brought any dangerous bacteria with her. This involved breathing into numerous tubes and Petri dishes, being swabbed at various locations that bacteria could thrive, and a blood sample. When her food is digested, Shepard would also need to provide a stool sample. Supposedly, this is to be a daily event; the checks are not just for the crews' safety, but also to find out if the Asari bacteria affect the Humans. Shepard is half surprised this did not happen earlier, but she is informed the others have already been tested; she was the last, and she will need to turn up at the same time tomorrow, but as concepts of time are different, the Asari medics will come for her.</p><p>After being thoroughly tested, Shepard makes her way to the ship's gym and does a rather thorough workout before discovering the Asari showers are on a timer, not because energy and water are limited, but to try and stop Asari from spending too long in the showers. The ship only has a few showers and a crew of 120 when you take the day crew and night crew into account.</p><p>After a shower, Shepard heads back to the mess hall, hunger already setting in, only to discover her evening meal is not for another 4 hours. A catering member offers her a snack in the form of a protein bar and a hot drink, so Shepard takes it and moves to sit at a table.</p><p>After checking the protein bar and drink for any harmful substances, Shepard begins to snack while reading the news on her phone again before a voice stops her, "You realise you are poisoning yourself right now?"</p><p>Shepard looks up to Tevos, "No? Am I?"</p><p>"Your biology can't handle eezo?" Tevos asks as much as she states.</p><p>Tevos sighs as she sits down opposite, "That bar, its literally an eezo bar, used by physically and biotically active Asari. It contains 14bt of eezo and it will poison you."</p><p>With a sigh Shepard stands up, "I'll be back," She informs before disappearing and returning a few short minutes later, her eyes red. "I threw it up." She says needlessly, hoping the minute it was in her body was not long enough to cause damage, "What of this drink?"</p><p>Tevos takes the cup and sniffs it before confirming, "It is an Asari tea, also containing eezo. I assume you got this from the catering staff?" Shepard nods, "Then I will have yet another chat with them, stop them from giving you any more eezo tainted food."</p><p>"Hmm," Shepard hums in appreciation before asking, "Do they have any none eezo snacks?"</p><p>"I'd have to ask, I'm not familiar with what they have on this vessel," Admits the Councillor, "But how are you hungry already? Didn't the day crew eat only 2 hours ago?"</p><p>"Yes? But I have been to the gym."</p><p>"And you are hungry already?" Asks Tevos incrediously.</p><p>"Yes?"</p><p>Tevos is a little surprised before making a very human shrug like motion, "Well, I guess your hunger is faster than ours. I'll chat to them, are your fellow Humans also hungry?"</p><p>Shepard shakes her head, "Probably not. They are not augmented, slower metabolism." The word metabolism does not translate, so Shepard is forced to use the phrase 'slower to hunger'.</p><p>After leaving to find some edible food for Shepard, Tevos returns a short time later with a piece of paper, some fruit and a hot drink; on the paper is a list of foods Shepard can eat, and Tevos tries to tell her the name of the food stocks. As most of the food is from Thessia or Asari worlds, Shepard gets her first taste at learning some Asari, resulting in an exciting exercise in trying to pronounce a few strange sounds, requiring some actual yoga of the tongue. In the end, Shepard takes the paper, knowing that she will butcher the pronunciations without practice.</p><p>After Tevos leaves to do whatever work she needs to do, Shepard goes to find from the middle-aged Asari to ask how her plan is developing in projecting the screen of her laptop. While she may like the idea of sitting and pestering the Asari crew, asking them many bone questions, she realises that doing so will only annoy them as most of them are working or on their break. When the Asari confirms she has a plan to project the laptop screen and audio, Shepard is left with only one question in her mind, if she was to show an alien crew their first Human film, what should she show them?</p><p>At first, she was thinking something sensible, but she could also see some irony in playing a film simply called 'Aliens', but at the same time, the film is dated and may give the Asari the wrong impression. So, what should she put on for them?</p><p>/.../</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Cheers for reading!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0025"><h2>25. The Journey</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Shepard puts a film on for the Asari, and the Reapers continue to play games. This chapter delves a little more into the intricacies of First Contact.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thanks for everyone who has reviewed this so far! </p><p>RR:<br/>Maldevinine: You were thinking along my lines with Fantasia, and how the translations would be problematic, but I wanted Humans in it, to help show human quirks etc. Cheers for the review. </p><p>SSSkeletonsoffun: Glad your enjoying it. Cheers for the review.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>So, what film should Shepard put on for the alien crew? Shepard was quick to realise she could not just put any old movie on, even the all-time blockbusters, because as much as she would enjoy watching some colonial marines getting slaughtered by bloodthirsty xenomorphs, the Asari may not. She also realises that just because she has talked about exchanging films, that does not mean an Asari movie is told in the same way as a Human flick.</p><p>The Asari need to be introduced to the idea that the movie will follow some main characters, and the narrative will be told through the story, not by some outside narrator or some other different mechanism. The language barrier is also an issue; while Shepard may be able to get some translation software to put it into Prothean, it is most likely going to put it into Prothean text instead of Prothean dubs. Humans have had no need for Prothean dubs at all, so Shepard does not imagine she will be able to find some software that can do the job. The next question is, will she even need dubs, or can she use subtitles? From Shepard's point of view, it would seem like the Asari have an audible translation device of some kind, so they may be out of their depth with subtitles.</p><p>Could she find an AI which could provide dubs? Probably, but does she then want to invite an AI onto the ship, knowing the Councils opposition to them? Shepard is quick to realise the sensible way forward is to task an AI to complete the job for her in Human space and then send the program to her laptop on the Asari vessel. She would also probably need to find some voice actors because while an AI could create some voices to use, a Human could do a better job.</p><p>This ultimately turns out to be the solution, an old AI is happy to make the program, and an acting college is happy to provide the voices for the AI to use, knowing that their voices will be heard by the aliens. While Shepard knows this solution is the best she can get, she also knows it will have problems, as the Prothean Humans uses often needs to be clarified. The only solution to this will be to explain it using different words and terminology as and when required.</p><p>But, Shepard also realises that there will be a lot of explaining to do anyhow for the simple reason that the Aliens do not know of Human culture. For example, a man in a uniform with a truncheon may be a crook or a police officer, and they will need to be able to easily identify that. Many minor little human quirks, fashion senses, and ideas that any Human can identify and often do not require an explanation for understanding the situation will likely also need to be explained. So, in short, Shepard needs an easy to understand film without complexities that will have her explaining Human culture every two seconds.</p><p>Eventually, Shepard lands on a film choice, a silent movie by Charlie Chaplin, called 'The kid', with the best part being it is free for her to get access to on youtube. Without any speech, she will also not be waiting on the college students to provide their voices, and Shepard can quickly enough translate the title cards displayed, so the AI's program isn't needed. In short, she could put this film on for the Asari the second they figure out how to display the screen of her laptop and project its audio.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Shepard learns a few Asari insults at her evening meal, such as 'meat eater' and 'pureblood', the concepts of which are crazy to her; why is being a 'pure blood' be considered a bad thing? Trying to delve deeper here did not prove to be too fruitful for her, other than some rambling about a genetic disease; as for meat-eater, it is a simple insult for someone who overeats meat, which when eaten in excessive quantities is considered slightly barbaric in Asari society.</p><p>On a related note, Shepard also discovers her food requirements are far greater than that of the Asari, as she comfortably could have eaten 3 or 4 servings. Therefore, it is unfortunate for her to learn that requesting more food can in a lot of circumstances, be seen as insulting in Asari society, but they are aware different species require different amounts of food.</p><p>After the meal is finished, Shepard agrees to put the film on that she chose for the day crew. The room the Asari wish to display the movie is relatively small, and by the time the movie is playing, dozens of Asari have crowded in, most bringing with them some snacks of some sort.</p><p>As Shepard expected, as the film progressed, she had to explain many things from Human culture, from how an orphanage in the late 1800's early 1900's is not widely considered to be a pleasant place, to some uncommon Human gestures. Due to the film's lack of speech, she thankfully does not need to translate every two seconds, but she does translate the title cards. Despite the film being almost 1,500 years old at the point it is played for the Asari, it is still a valuable tool in teaching them about Humans, such as how the two main characters showed affection for one another.</p><p>Once the film is finished and the evening comes to a close, Shepard discovers her next lesson about the Asari; an Asari day is just under 28 hours long. While this may not be an issue in the short term, it will cause issues in the long term for the average Human. A Human has naturally evolved for a 24 hour day, so trying to live to a 28-hour cycle could cause health problems. After inquiring about the length of the day, Shepard also finds out the Turians have a 28 hour day, Quarians have a 32 hour day, Elcor a 68 hour day and the volus a 36 hour day. The only three species which have shorter days are the Salarians and Krogan, at just under 22 hours, and the Batarians at just under 19 hours. The 'problem' here is Batarians and the Krogan do not tend to leave their own systems, and the Salarians, while numerous, are not as plentiful as the other species with a longer day, meaning the regulated Citadel day is 28 hours to best suit Turian and Asari biology.</p><p>Shepard is not too worried about the implications of living in an environment with long days, the actual consequences of this are for the egg heads back in Sol to ponder over, and they can advise her on the best actions to take.</p><p>The next day, Shepard goes under more medical exams by the Asari doctors, visits the gym for a light session in the morning, and eats the equivalent of four meals for breakfast to the Chef's annoyance. In the afternoon, she sent a report back to Sol detailing anything of interest she has discovered, the result of this is HQ learning of her sharing Human movies and them effectively taking control of the film choice. Shepard no longer has free reign of the movies displayed; instead, Sol's first contact teams have selected a set of films she can put on for them, depending on their mood.</p><p>Movies that pit Humans against aliens is strictly off-limits, such as Shepards favourite 'Alien', as are war movies from the War of Sol, or anything else that depicts a realistic Human war from the last few hundred years. Anything that also shows the worst of Human behaviours and history is also off-limits with a few exceptions, such as the Great Escape due to the showing of other more positive traits. Finally, anything that is generally rated less than 'good' on a common movie review site is also restricted simply because if Shepard is going to put on a movie, she should put highly rated ones on. The Asari who see these films will by nature talk, so if the movies are well received, then the Asari will hopefully say positive things, spreading the word, which could in the future be a boost for the Human entertainment industry.</p><p>The first contact teams also take control of her efforts to dub films in Prothean, which, while it will be a pain for Shepard, will ultimately provide better results; the first contact teams have more money to throw at the problem and more resources than Shepard could hope for.</p><p>In the afternoon, Shepard hits the gym again, where the Asari learn she can run faster than the fastest recorded Asari and lift more than the strongest of Turians. Shepard does not tell the Asari that her augments are to thank for that; she will let them discover that in their own time. She also does not admit she could have lifted more, but the Asari gym equipment is not designed for her augmented physique.</p><p>For her evening meal, Shepard wolfs down three plates worth of food before stopping, and then in exchange for her playing a movie the day prior, the Asari put a film on for their Human guests. Like Shepard's choice, the movie is a silent film from what could be a similar stage in Asari technological development. It is slightly scary to Shepard that if you took the Asari out of the film and replaced them with Humans, she would have difficulty knowing this was not a Human creation. Some differences are apparent, biotics are clearly on display, and Asari society structure differs due to their Matriarchs having a very prominent role.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Sol</p><p>The President almost spits his drink out before asking those in the room to repeat themselves.</p><p>It is a poor science man who has to respond, "This device can go supernova."</p><p>The President brings his hands together and then makes an expanding motion, "Supernova?"</p><p>The science man nods once to the President as he confirms what he said, "A small one, but a supernova all the same."</p><p>"Alright," The President replies while going a little grey in the skin. After a deep breath, he looks to his military advisor, who has almost been a constant shadow of his these last few months, "What do you think?"</p><p>The Military advisor looks a little unsettled, "Mr President, this device is not Human, we have no control over it, and it poses an extinction-level threat. What we do have is evidence that some species out there can take control of these things, and we have evidence they are hostile. The tactical answer is to dismantle it, neutralise the problem before it becomes a threat."</p><p>"And lose our only link to the outside galaxy?" The President responds.</p><p>"My military advice is that thing is dangerous, and so are the people who can access it. I would feel a lot more comfortable with it gone."</p><p>The President continues to look a little apprehensive before turning to the science officer, "Can we dismantle it? Remove it?"</p><p>The science officer has an uneasy look, as if he is not sure, "We think so. We don't know how to remove it to a different location, but we can have a good go at dismantling it."</p><p>"You don't look convinced." The President notes. "With this thing, I need absolutes."</p><p>The science officer replies, "We have never done anything like it, nor have the Geth, or by the Geths' accounts have the Citadel, but in theory, from our scientists and engineers analysis, it should be simple... If we were not dealing with something that could end our solar system."</p><p>The President sighs hard before saying, "We need the resources that are out there, but I feel like this decision is above even me. Cerberus."</p><p>A woman replies, saying, "President?"</p><p>"Thoughts?"</p><p>"I can sway the public either way," The lady responds, "I just need to know which way you want me to sway them. But if this information was released at the moment, unaltered, I truthfully couldn't tell you how the public will swing. A great number of the public want to meet the aliens, others are thinking of seeing new places, but all are concerned with our security, even the Belters. Suppose I had to bet on raw results now. In that case, Earth is likely to sway for keeping it, Mars, Titan, Lunar and Jupiter will probably be against, Venus I couldn't say, Mercury will be split, the rings 5050 and the belters overwhelmingly for it.</p><p>The President knows he has the authority to make this decision, but he is not too comfortable with making any decision, especially if his entire species could be wiped out in seconds due to this thing. "Can you do your thing? See if you can work out a more detailed answer?"</p><p>The Cerberus representative nods, knowing just what she wants to do.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Asari Vessel.</p><p>The next few days are almost mirrored images of the days that came prior for Shepard; She would exercise, eat, send a report up to higher, have an Asari medical, exercise and eat some more. Eventually, she put on a movie for the crew or watched an Asari movie at the end of the day.</p><p>The only real change comes on day 10 after a long primary Relay jump when Shepard has an unexpected nose bleed and at feeling the onset of déjà vu Shepard quickly visited the Asari medical team, who have been taking daily scans of her. The result was conclusive; the Primary Relay jump has exposed her to enough radiation that she has once more been poisoned by eezo radiation.</p><p>At first, the Asari thought the Praetorian lacking an eezo drive, and the Humans never encountering eezo compounding effects, was partly why the Humans first came down sick with radiation poisoning, but now, they are sure that Humans are just astonishingly susceptible to eezo radiation. The Asari are quick to react when the radiation sickness is discovered and quickly perform none invasive operations to remove the eezo, but the damage is already setting in. By the end of the day, Shepard feels nauseous and the other Humans onboard would all show radiation sickness symptoms by the end of the day. It is at this point the Asari realise their conundrum; they have currently made two relay jumps to their current position, and the Citadel is one more jump away. To return to the Praetorian for medical aid, the Humans would have to endure another two jumps.</p><p>The Asari know they can remove the radiation quickly enough, they have done it before, but the problem comes from overcoming the damage already done. Asari may have some of the best doctors in the galaxy, but a Human is still very much alien to them.</p><p>To try and find a solution a different Human onboard the Asari vessel contacts medical teams in Sol and on the Praetorian for their experience. Fortunately for the Humans on the Asari ship, this was a predicted development from the medical staff, and some of the drugs they were told to pack can help. In little time a concoction of drugs is devised from the medicines they were made to pack with them, but it is not the ideal solution; instead, it is only a solution. Even with the concoction, it is made clear that they will be sick for a while, with the worst yet to come as their bodies react.</p><p>To give credit to the Asari, in addition to removing the eezo from each Human, they also had a room near the vessel's thick armour rapidly lined with heavy metals for them to reside in during eezo radiation spikes. The Asari hoped the heavy metals would stop the worst of the radiation. Shepard and the Human crew shared their hopes, for they were all starting to feel awful, the two jumps had caused some severe radiation sickness to set in, and it has only begun to show its teeth, by best estimates, they had two weeks of hell coming before any signs of improvement.</p><p>After some in-depth back and forth between Human and citadel medical teams, it was decided the vessel would continue to the Citadel as planned. Going back to the Praetorian was deemed too risky, so the only way forward was the Citadel. The Humans would inevitably get sicker from another Relay jump, even with thick heavy metal walls protecting them. Still, with quick-acting, the Asari should have the capability to remove the radiation immediately after the jump is complete, limiting the risk and danger.</p><p>This did raise the question as to why the Humans risked going anyhow, knowing they were at risk from eezo radiation. The answer was pretty clear, the reward was worth the risk, and the Asari eezo engines were supposed to minimise the risk.</p><p>In the days that follow the radiation sickness, the Asari crew take multitudes of blood samples; they fear the small chance that as the Humans will have inevitably weaker immune systems, an Asari pathogen could be next to ravage them. The findings put the Asari researchers at peace, Asari pathogens lack the correct protein strains required to bind to Human cells, and any toxins produced from the pathogens do not seem to be toxic. This was a surprise to the Human crew, who had fully expected any alien pathogens to be lethal before any research was conducted.</p><p>/.../</p><p>15th Day. Serpent Nebula</p><p>On final approach to the Citadel, Shepard mostly remained in the observation deck, where she witnessed the fleets that are supposed to defend the Citadel, but due to the distances involved, many of the vessels are small specks of light, twinkling away in the distance. Unless there is some fleet hidden away somewhere, the fleet that was in near orbit of the Citadel is not as large as she had imagined it would be, which will be relieving news for those back home, even if she could not tell the nature of the vessels. In addition to being underwhelmed by the fleets, the Citadel itself is a shadow of the Ring World above Earth; but Shepard reasons that with all the worlds you could want at your fingertips, why waste such vast resources on space stations?</p><p>Hearing a voice come over the ship's intercom, Shepard looks up for a split second before looking back down; she can not understand the language. Moments after, Shepard feels ever so slightly lighter, the artificial gravity of the vessel having been slowly reduced by approximately 10% to match that of the Citadel, or so she assumes. Human ships do something similar in adjusting gravity settings before landing on different worlds and gravity environments so people can acclimatise to the new gravity conditions and not look like fools by being caught out with a change in gravity the moment they step off the ship.</p><p>Just as the vessel enters the Citadels arms, the doors to the observation deck open behinds her, and Tevos enters, she is once more dressed in her Council robes. "If you are sure, we should get ready," Tevos states to the Human.</p><p>"Yeah." Shepard sighs as she slowly stands up, intending to move towards the exit of the room. Tevos had asked her the day previously if she wants to walk off the vessel and face those who have come to get their first glimpse of a Human, or take a more discrete exit. The Councillor asked because Shepard does not look her best; the radiation sickness was having its way with her in the days prior.</p><p>Initially, Shepard refused the offer to walk off the ship; she does not like Human paparazzi, so she reasoned that nor would she like the alien paparazzi that are bound to have come out. It was a Human who convinced her otherwise. The other Human explorers were all in a similar, if not worse, situation as Shepard, recovering from radiation exposure, but none of them has the advanced military augmentations that Shepard has received. Ultimately, thanks to her augmentations, Shepard is the only Human on board who could walk off without looking blatantly ill. If no Humans walked off, questions would quickly be raised; instead of the morning headlines saying 'Human walks on the Citadel', it would be 'Humans sick in Hospital'. Realising this would not be a good look for her species, Shepard once more resigned herself to being the poster girl for Humanity.</p><p>But, walking down a ramp is not as simple as walking down a ramp when you introduce its politics. HQ back in Sol got involved when they learned of the situation, and once more, Shepard had lost any kind of freedom for the event. This was going to be a big press moment, so they give her lines to say if the press asked her specific questions, but more intrudingly, they wanted to know what clothes she had to wear so they could then control that too, they even demanded she changes her hair colour to her natural blonde. Changing hair colour is a trivial matter in the modern ages of telling the nanocoating on one's hair to change colour, but the request severely annoyed Shepard. She is here to be a representative of Humanity, to show what Humans are like, yet they are taking all her own personality out of it.</p><p>You then have to throw into the mix that this is an Asari war vessel, which comes with its own traditions on disembarking after a mission, and then there is the additional fact there is a Councillor onboard, so additional rules have to be followed. Knowing all the hassle from occasionally having to organise functions for high profile people back at barracks, Shepard is silently glad that she is not involved with the planning and needs to be told what to do. She is also glad because she is classed as one of the 'high profile' people disembarking, she does not need to attend rehearsals like the other Asari onboard have had to.</p><p>After getting to the airlock, it is a simple game of hurry up and wait; like all militaries, even the Asari rush to get prepared for things that are happening with plenty of time to spare. As they wait, an occasional clunk can be heard as docking clamps latch on like limpets. As they wait, Tevos remarks, "So, your hair has changed colour again."</p><p>"Hmm," Shepard initially grunts back, "HQ wanted my natural colour. So, we really just walking down a ramp and meeting the other Councillors?"</p><p>"As simple as that." Tevos assures, "And when the door initially opens, guard your eyes; from experience, I can assure you the press will be blinding."</p><p>"My cornea can handle it," Shepard says simply but in a way that does not come across as bragging. She knows her corneas are augmented and designed to dim with bright flashes to help prevent sight loss from exposure to bright light or certain types of electromagnetic radiation, all of which are dangers for a marine who could be fighting in space. Just before the doors open, Shepard makes sure that she is recording the event, as ordered to by HQ; no doubts they are secretly watching this back home right now.</p><p>Even though all were expecting it, blinding amounts of light entered the airlock when the doors did open. After a moment to let the worse of the flashing pass, Tevos made a gesture with her head, so Shepard joined her to walk down the ramp; as she walks, she is to remain in line with the Councillor. The order to stay in line with the Councillor was issued by HQ, and not the Council itself.</p><p>As Shepard takes her first few breaths of Citadel air, she can't help but notice it is exactly like the air on a ringworld, clinically dry and lacking any scent. The air purifiers are probably at hard work removing all moisture and containments to help inhibit corrosion, preventing system failures. Prevention is key to long term maintenance. Looking around when out of the airlock, she also takes note of a few things. The Citadel has blessed either Tevos or herself with an honorary armed guard positioned at even spaces up the ramp and on either side, totalling 14 men. At the bottom of the ramp, a tall alien and shorter skinny alien is waiting for them; the two aliens must be the two other councillors. Behind the councillors at the bottom of the ramp is more press than she can count, held back by a few guards and railings.</p><p>About halfway down the ramp, time seems to slow to an almost stop for Shepard as an old and familiar feeling makes its deafening presence known, and before her, a spray of red blood surges forward from her abdomen. As Shepard's legs give way from the shock and she falls towards the floor, she can't help but think maybe the newspaper headline 'Human in Hospital' wouldn't be too bad afterall.</p><p>/.../</p><p>Meanwhile, four glowing eyes study a screen before closing it down; while the assassination attempt did not go to plan, the effect has still been delivered. Opening another screen the bug-like creature then transfers an eyewatering sum into an Asari's bank account; the cost was more than that required to assassinate a Councillor, but the price would be worth it if the desired outcome is achieved. Hopefully, the humans should be furious with the news that a Turian CSEC guard assassinated one of their own.</p><p>Opening another screen, the bug then continues working on its next plan as its superior releases control.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0026"><h2>26. Sods Law</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Shepard is mortally injured.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>For Tevos, time comes to a near stop as she hears the unmistakable crack of a weapon fill the air. Her first instinct was simply to stop walking as her mind battles the flight or fight drive; she quickly reasons that if someone is firing a weapon, it will likely be at herself. Assassinate the Turian Councillor, and a replacement would be stepped up in a matter of hours, assassinate the Salarian representative, and their government is adaptable enough to have a replacement ready in days. If she was to be assassinated, the Matriarchs would toil and argue for months, even years, over who should replace her. Irissa can stand in temporarily, but till confirmed as the next Councillor from the Matriarch Council, her powers would be severely limited, making her nothing more than a witness to Council business. </p><p>In truth, it is widely known she is the most vulnerable member of the Council, so the Asari spend a ridiculous amount of resources to ensure her safety. </p><p>As time marches forward, Tevos comes to the realisation that it is not her who has been shot, but the red spray and falling Human to her side tells her the actual victim. As the blood is spraying in front of her, Tevos knows the shot originated from behind her, so turning around, she looks for the threat. The threat is no longer a danger as multiple Turians from the Honour Guard have moved to jump on one of their own. Knowing the assassin poses no more risk to life, Tevos looks back to her Human, who is now on the floor, laying on her back while tearing a sleeve off her shirt. </p><p>Tevos has to give Shepard credit; there is a horrifically large wound in her abdomen with a catastrophic amount of blood loss, yet she does not look afraid. No, Shepard instead looks angry; her cybernetics have given her a horrific red glow. </p><p>Kneeling down, Tevos goes to help but stops herself to ask, "Shepard, how can I help?" </p><p>Shepard does not give a verbal response; instead, she uses one hand to push her scrumpled-up sleeve onto her wound and the other to pull her phone out of her pocket. Tevos looks to the phone out of curiosity; why would the Human get this device out? </p><p>"Councillor," The phone says, using a voice that is distinctly Shepards. "I can't speak; doing so will accelerate the blood loss."</p><p>"How are you..." Tevos responds. </p><p>"I'm Shepard AI." The phone responds, cutting her off. "I'm losing too much blood; hold my wound." Tevos pauses for a split second before doing as told, allowing physical Shepard to tear her other sleeve off, "You need to roll me over," Shepards AI then says, "Put this on the entry wound. Stem the blood loss" The physical Shepard holds her other sleeve in a shaky hand.   </p><p>By now, a few of Tevos's secret service guards from the Citadel have reached her and are ready to protect her, but Tevos has a different idea in mind. "Help me turn her over." She instructs in her native tongue. Two of the guards do not hesitate and help, but one remains on guard duties. Shepard is quickly turned onto her side, where one of the guards then holds the sleeve on the wound, but it is a losing battle. "What now?" Tevos asks in Prothean. </p><p>"Two things. Ask a human for Omni-Gel. It is in our medical kits. But I am losing too much blood, I will need a transfusion from Jess Cartright." Shepards AI is designed to help stem blood loss from a bullet wound, but when faced with the reality of an object the size of a grain of sand moving at a small % of the speed of light, from close range, it is like a 50 cal moving through her body; deadly and devastating. The fact she is still alive is a testament to her augmented survivability on its own; any other natural Human would already have succumbed. If she was in her armour, she would have a range of tools available to keep her alive, but out here in the far depths of alien space, wearing nothing but civilian clothes, the AI can only try to stem the blood loss by blocking arteries and veins which is harder done than said. </p><p>As more people arrive, Tevos quickly gives them tasks: find the 'Omni-Gel', another to find Jess Cartright, another to get a doctor from the ship with blood transfusion kits, and another to find some form of privacy cover. Hopefully, the transfusion requirements are the same for Asari as it is for Humans; otherwise, Shepard may be in even bigger trouble than she is already in.</p><p>"Councillor," The AI then says, "My biological part is about to pass out; I do not have long." Tevos does not understand every translated word, but she got the gist, and to her, the AI may ever so slightly sound distressed.</p><p>For some reason, Tevos decided to comfort the dying Human by stroking her hair, not her head. "Help is coming," She says, "Hold on." It is only seconds after that the Human relinquishes her grip on the conscious world.  The large streams of red blood running down the docking ramp now are another indicator of how much danger her Human is in. </p><p>Seeing this, one of Tevos's guards says, "Councillor, she has gone, we must go." </p><p>"She is not dead yet." Tevos snaps back at the guard.</p><p>A few critical moments later, a panting Turian arrives, holding a small metal container, 5 cm in diameter by 10 cm deep. "Put the gel in the wound." The AI instructs, "More in my front than the back." </p><p>"How much?" Tevos asks. </p><p>"All of it." The AI says, "This is enough for deep cuts and scrapes, not battlefield injuries." Tevos does not flounder; she rips the tin of the lid off and is quick to spread the gel inside the wound; while gruesome, she understands the necessity of it. The effects are almost immediate as the blood loss slows and damaged flesh start to morph into live tissue. "Incredible," Tevos gasps.</p><p>"Yes." The AI responds, "Omni-Gel has saved my life many times, but I have lost too much blood; I need the transfusion, and I need it now. I have just passed 38% blood loss; a cardiac arrest will occur at 50%." </p><p>Tevos grimaces before looking up and around her to assess the situation; in truth, she just wants to find someone to shout at in a vain effort to hurry things up. It is only now that Tevos notices a reporter has also been shot, the bullet that hit Shepard having hit them too, but they are not receiving the same level of care. </p><p>Hearing heavy footsteps, Tevos looks to the source and notes one of the ship's doctors approaching; behind them, a Human still profoundly sick from radiation poisoning is being dragged by two other Asari. As the doctor arrives, she says, "I got the kit." </p><p>"Point my phone's display at the equipment so I can see." The AI says. </p><p>Tevos does not delay in pointing the phone. "It's compatible." The AI then says, seeing that the kit is almost identical to a Human blood transfusion kit, "Put the donor needle to Cartright's left arm; I will direct." </p><p>The doctor does as told, resulting in the AI saying, "Up, up left, left, down,  up, insert, insert, insert, stop. When blood leaves the far needle, do the same to my left arm. I will direct again." The AI does not care to explain that the blood leaving the needle indicates there is no air in the system, which could provide its own issues. </p><p>Just as the privacy cover is being placed around Shepard to stop any prying eyes, the AI speaks again, "I am now receiving blood from Mrs Cartwright. Chances of survival have been greatly increased." There is a long pause before the AI speaks again, "Thank you." It then says. </p><p>Tevos blinks in acceptance of the thanks before looking down at the wound, which is now significantly smaller than the initial injury; the healing technology proves to be a wonder to herself.  With more medical staff in attendance, Tevos realises it is time to step back, so she stands up and looks around; during the midst of trying to save the Humans life, the Turian guard that caused this chaos has been dragged away, destined for a Spectre torture house. The paparazzi that turned out for the arrival has now been forced away; only the lifeless corpse of a Turian lays on the floor where the crowd had gathered, a small medical team now closing down the scene.  Looking down to the medics, she asks, "Do you need any further help?" The Medics signal they do not, so Tevos begins walking down the ramp, and her security service starts following closely, but she stops to direct that a few of them stay with the Human.</p><p>As Tevos continues to walk down the ramp, she notices her Salarian and Turian counterparts approach the bottom of the ramp. When Tevos arrives at the bottom of the ramp, it is Sparatus who speaks first, saying, "Long time no see, but I've always said you have been followed by excitement." Tevos flashes him a brief smile. </p><p>"Understatement of the decade." Valern says, "Glad you are well, dealing with Irissa has been... vexatious." </p><p>Tevos takes a split second to look around before saying, "Despite recent events, it is good to be home. I hope you have made arrangements while I was busy?" </p><p>"A wing is being prepared at your private estate." Sparatus replies with a flare of his mandibles, "How do you think the Humans will deal with this when they find out?" </p><p>"They will already know," Tevos informs, "The Human shot is part AI; she has an instant communication network that has most likely told her people of what has happened." Sparatus breathes deeply with this news, allowing Tevos to ask, "I hope we have a discrete way of transporting her?" </p><p>"CSEC medical corps have been mobilised," Sparatus reveals, "And there is medical transportation waiting nearby. All it requires is someones say, and they will land where we are standing now." </p><p>Tevos shows visible relief before saying, "Good good." There is a noticeable change of emotion on Tevos's face before she says, "Now, I see you have been busy in my absence. Sparatus, expect my formal objection to your warship tomorrow; consider this a friendly heads up." This conversation does not last long till Tevos removes herself from the conversation, leaving Sparatus and Valern on the dock alone.</p><p>"She went straight back into business," Sparatus says caustically.</p><p>"That Asari is entirely business-related." Valern states, "Did you expect anything less?" </p><p>"The least she could have said is thank you for sending a fleet?" Sparatus says sarcastically as the two remaining Councillors head towards an awaiting transport. </p><p>"Is this how I should expect you to talk about me behind my back?" Playfully asks Valern.</p><p>"Yes," Sparatus replies honestly, showing his blunt nature that sometimes comes through. "And you already know that I do." </p><p>"True true," Replies the Salarian, "I particularly like your scorn of 'Fraq person'." </p><p>"Do you deny it?" </p><p>"It's technically the truth," Valern replies, "But a great insult. I had a good laugh, the type that makes the souls of your feet ache." </p><p>"And this is why I like you Valern," Sparatus says while playfully punching the Salarian on the arm, "You know how the game works." </p><p> </p><p>/.........../</p><p>Two days later, Tevos has an Asari spectre standing at the bottom of her desk; this Spectre is not the type you send on combat missions, but rather assignments that require a special touch in information gathering by unethical means. "If you are here," Tevos starts to summarise, "You know why he did it?" </p><p>"Yes," The Spectre blinks, "Want the short version or the long version?" </p><p>Tevos considers for a moment before responding, "The short version will do, and I will ask questions when they arise." </p><p>The Spectre blinks once more before starting to recite what she has found, "The guard, Marcellus Ceres has a family, a partner and two children, who live with him on the Citadel. His family was tied up with plastic explosives. If he didn't shoot the Human, he lost his family." </p><p>"So," Tevos replies before asking the obvious, "Who tied up his family?"</p><p>The Spectre produces an image on her omni-tool. "This Salarian. His alias is Anaxyrus Boreas Halophilus. We know him to be an active operative for the Shadow Broker."    </p><p>Tevos leans back into her chair as she fiddles with a pen, while the Shadow Broker is open to many different types of jobs, if you have the money for it, the Broker has never directly targeted the Council; doing so would result in a ruthless hunt for it. After a moment, Tevos says, "This wasn't the Brokers work."</p><p>"I must admit to having doubts." The Spectre agrees, "None of this is its style."  </p><p>"Do we know the..." Tevos silences a buzzer on her desk that indicates her PA has information for her, "...Location of this Salarian now?" </p><p>"Left the Citadel the moment Marcellus completed the job. Records show his charted craft is heading to Illium, but I have discovered the records were forged on closer inspection. We do not know where the craft is heading."</p><p>"I want him found," Tevos says before dismissing the Spectre. After a few moments to think things over Tevos leans forward and calls her PA that had buzzed her a few moments ago, "You rang?" She asks. </p><p> </p><p>"Councilor," Begins the aid, "Your Human is showing signs of consciousness. She should be awake any time now." </p><p>"According to who?"  Asks Tevos. </p><p>"Her device." The aid says. </p><p>"Prepare my transport," Tevos says before pressing a few keys on her physical keyboard to make sure her work document is saved. Tevos knows she should stay and continue work; she has a lot to catch up on, but Shepard is a part of her estate, the attack on Shepard was an attack on her, and she has a personal responsibility to look after her Human. </p><p>Arriving at her estate a short time later her doctor greets her, "Peitho, your Human is now awake." </p><p>Tevos allows a small smile with the news, "I hope all is well?" </p><p>"She was angry on awakening," The doctor says, "Scarily so, but she is now entertained by her device." </p><p>"Nothing for me to be worried about?" Tevos has a slight hunch that the Human could have an angry streak in her.</p><p>"Maybe," The doctor says, "Since she has come in, I've performed a few in-depth scans on her, and I think you should be aware of how much modification this Human has endured. She is more of a cyborg than a biological being. Asari black ops don't even come close to this type of modification."</p><p>"I'm well aware." Tevos lets the doctor know, "She is a Human soldier with some disturbing enhancements; most of which would be illegal in Citadel space. I would best advise that the scans you have taken are kept under encryption. Have you made any other observations?" </p><p>The doctor blinks, "Something is going on in her brain, despite her being unconscious; it's like something is active in there; we are picking up a lot of electrical activity." </p><p>"I can only guess, but I would imagine that is her AI. I suggest you keep that bit of information to yourself." </p><p>"Of course, Matriarch." The doctor replies obediently. </p><p>Tevos leaves her personal doctor and enters the room where the Human has been residing for the last two days, and upon her entering, the Human looks up, "I know you. How're things?" </p><p>Tevos raises a brow, "Well, but I do not believe I am at risk here." </p><p>"No." The Human chuckles a little, "But you did save my life. I...I am not good at this, so I'll say it as it is. Thank you for saving my life." </p><p>Tevos considers a diplomatic response before she gets a better idea and says, "Shepard?" </p><p>"Yea?"</p><p>Tevos considers her words before then saying, "Of Athena." The saying is lost on Shepard, so Tevos clarifies, "I did what any person would." </p><p>Shepard is silent for a second before speaking, "That is comforting news, but I know everything you did; I know how everything happened. You saved my life." </p><p>Tevos starts to look slightly uncomfortable, so Shepard asks, "Can you help me to my feet?" </p><p>"Is that wise?" Asks Tevos, eyeing the bandages around Shepard's midriff, which hide a nasty wound still healing. </p><p>"Yes." Shepard says, "While that sight is something, I need to get up and on my feet. I'll go mad otherwise."  The room Shepard is situated on has a rather pretty view of the Citadels docks; from here, Shepard can see all the vessels arriving and departing. </p><p>Tevos considers for a moment more before saying, "I do not want to risk hastening things from excitement." </p><p>"I can hack it." Shepard says with some misplaced confidence. </p><p>"No." Tevos replies forcefully, "You need rest, please."   </p><p>"Ah well, guess I'll have to do it myself," Shepard responds. The Human then begins to roll out of bed, before landing on her feet and looking unsteady. </p><p>Tevos rushes to her side, "Shepard, do not rush this." She scolds. "Just two days ago, you had a hole the size of a pulb in your stomach."  </p><p>"I'm a marine." Shepard replies with tremendous amounts of defiance. By now, Shepard is on her own two feet, supporting most of her weight; the 10% not supported is held up by Tevos and a hand on the medical bed behind her. "So, where are we?" Shepard asks. </p><p>"My home." Tevos answers while fuming at her Human, "And I would appreciate not holding you up any longer than necessary." By now, a few extra doctors have walked into the room and are trying to help, but the language barrier is a very real obstacle. </p><p>Shepard takes a few shaky steps forward before her weight causes her to collapse, not even Tevos could hold the 130kg human up, and her fall almost causes Tevos to collapse with her. "Shepard, you are rushing things." Tevos half hisses at the Human just barely held off the floor. "My doctors will put you back to bed, where you will stay." A few of the Asari gathered in the room are quick to rush into action. </p><p>"Your doctors?" Shepard asks from the floor as she is slowly and gently picked up.</p><p>"Yes." Tevos answers with some hidden anger, "As mentioned, you are in my home; these.." Tevos gestures to those who have gathered in the room, and those helping Shepard from the floor, "Are my doctors. Some of the best money can afford."  </p><p>After a while, Shepard is back in her bed, her weight was a true challenge for the medical staff to contend with, she weighs more like a heavy Turian. Once Shepard is back in her bed, Tevos and her Human are left alone, letting Tevos say, "Shepard, as amazing as your recovery has been, you still have time left."</p><p>There is a defeated sigh released from the Human before Shepard says, "I guess I just proved that." </p><p>"Then you will stay in bed?" Tevos asks. </p><p>"I will." Shepard admits. "For now." </p><p>"Good," Tevos says, before changing subjects, "You will be glad to know we got the one responsible for this." </p><p>"The shooter or the bank roller?" Shepard asks, being wise enough to know that whoever wanted her dead was unlikely to do it themselves. </p><p>"The shooter. He was put into a situation where he could shoot you, or his family would be killed. We are searching for the one who put him in that difficult position." </p><p>The two spend some time discussing what had actually happened before Tevos excused herself, knowing how much work was still piled up for her to contend with. </p><p>/....../</p><p>Tevos pinches her nose before standing up in her private study in her estate, the Human is constantly proving to be an awful patient, worse than a Turian, but not as bad as a Krogan. Leaving her study Tevos finds Shepard holding herself up on a wall a small distance from her medical room.</p><p>"Don't say it," Shepard says as she notices Tevos approach. </p><p>Tevos breaths out deeply before suppressing any comments regarding how the Human should still be bed-bound; after a few seconds to contemplate, she says, "Are you not in pain?" </p><p>"I can suppress pain easily enough." Shepard reveals, "Part of my AI's functions, but it doesn't mean I can't feel it." </p><p>"Yet here you are aggravating your wound."   </p><p>"I would rather have an aggregated wound and not be in there," Shepard says while half pointing back to the medical room, "And I need a shower; I still have blood on me." </p><p>Tevos has to admit, the Human is starting to stink a little, so she makes a decision, "I will help you to the showers, but you will return afterwards." </p><p>After a few moments, Shepard nods her head, "Deal, also, I have something you may want to see." Shepard pulls her phone out of her pocket and displays a video of four humans discussing on podiums, but they look like they are in a heated argument. "They are talking about the transport devices and if we should power them back up, or dismantle it."</p><p>The conversation is not in Prothean, so Tevos can not understand the arguments, but she can see it is heated, "Seems like this is going to become my permanent home." Shepard tells with a concerned look. "It was a 5050 argument till I got shot." Shepard has to explain what 5050 means. "And now, well, people are starting to become increasingly isolationist. We have had shots at our homeworld, our fleet attacked, people abducted, and now my assassination attempt." </p><p>Tevos closes her eyes and takes a few deep breaths to centre herself before opening her eyes to ask, "When will the decision be made?" </p><p>"There will be a public vote in 2 months," Shepard says, "54 Earth days from now. I've been asked to let you know. If I had to guess, it's probably to see if you wanted to partake in any debates, or Q&amp;A's, tell the public why they should keep it."   </p><p>"Your species likes producing me lots of work; you know this, right?" </p><p>Shepard nods as she says, "We are hard work." </p><p>"We know," Tevos replies, "But yes, the Council will want to take part in your debates, and we will participate in whatever this Q and A is. Please let your superiors know."  </p><p>Shepard recognises the response before pushing herself off of the wall that has been supporting her, "Anyway, I'm clamming for a shower." </p><p>"This way," Tevos answers and starts to walk, but she slows down when she realises Shepard is walking very slowly and in an awkward manner that shows her discomfort. "We can get you a wheel..."</p><p>"No." Shepard answers back with some force, "I will not be wheeled around like an invalid or a downgraded MND biff."  </p><p>Tevos is not too surprised by the strong response, considering everything she knows so far about the poor manners of the patient, "Downgraded MND biff?" She asks as she slowly walks with Shepard. </p><p>"Downgraded MND means downgraded from 'Fully Deployable' to 'Medically None Deployable'. Biff is just an insult that I probably shouldn't use, but I do." The word Biff has been used since 20th-century militaries; its use never fully stamped out but always passed from one generation of soldiers to the next. Many Human military terms can be traced back to similar stories. </p><p>After a while walking, Shepard has to stop at and hold herself up on a post, not out of breath, but to allow the discomfort settle a little. As she waits, she has to ask Tevos, "So everyone who has passed us is in your estate." </p><p>"Yes." Tevos blinks, "There are a few rare exceptions of partners, who are visitors and not invited to join, but everyone else here calls my estate home." </p><p>"We have passed about 15 people," Shepard answers, even though her AI tells her they have passed exactly 15 people, "Just how big is this estate?" </p><p>"351 People," Tevos informs. "Actually, since you are now here, this number rises to 352." </p><p>"Ah, only 352." Shepard says with heavy sarcasm before pushing herself off the wall again. After walking another 100 meters, Shepard comes across a wooden wall decorated with portraits; some are old oil paintings, some are photographs, next to the images are some weapons that correlate in age to how old the pictures look. One or two of the portraits, especially the older looking images, have missing weapons.  "All of your family?" She asks Tevos. </p><p>"Yes and no," Tevos answers, "Powerful Matriarchs often show their power and wealth by buying a Guardian for their children, whose sole purpose is for that child's personal protection. These are all the Guardians of my bloodline and their weapon of choice. I would consider them family, but not by blood." </p><p>"You buy them? Like slaves?" Shepard inquires.</p><p>"The practice is questionable by today's standards," Tevos reluctantly admits, "They are forever in the service of the Matriarch and her child, but do not think of them as slaves. They are paid well, fed from the same plate, provided accommodation, given top-quality education, and their families are well looked after. Moreover, do not think of them as glorified servants; you would not send one to get a drink or scratch your back, but rather glorified bodyguards. Thus the high cost of having a guardian and the wealth status it provides." </p><p>"Do you have one? I haven't exactly seen a shadow following you." The idea of someone being a shadow needs to be explained.  </p><p>Tevos blinks, but at the same time, she clenches her fists, "I did; she died 300 years ago. My first and only child does, however, have one."</p><p>"Sorry to hear it." Shepard answers as she looks at the various portraits, "So, will you 'buy' another one or...?" </p><p>"So this is why it's controversial by today's standards, the Guardian is to be younger than the Matriarchs child so that they never are of higher standing in the Matriarchs Council, yet they are also to be no younger than a year. As a guardian is assigned before the birth of a Matriarchs child, we buy children mothers have never met. If they die, they are never replaced."</p><p>Shepard thinks on the implications of this for a few moments before shrugging, "Well, I'll be honest, my culture wouldn't approve, but this isn't my culture."</p><p>"A lot of Asari do not approve either, including other Matriarchs of noticeable standing," Tevos reluctantly agrees, "But they rarely know the full details of the contracts; it is not something we like to publish due to the sensitive nature contained within. Despite earlier saying they are forever in the service of the Matriarch, the details are not so simple, a Guardian can leave and null the contract, but they forfeit family benefits and often ludicrous wages. </p><p> </p><p>Eventually, Tevos has led Shepard to the nearest showers that she can use, and the Human starts to strip her medical robes, which reveal to Tevos the full extent of her life long injuries and cybernetics. Scars litter the Humans body, some small, some large, many are apparent war wounds that look deadly in their own right. The glowing cybernetics is also on full display; Tevos has seen the red glow in Shepard's eyes and down in her arms, but she did not think it would also be seen on the torso.</p><p>"Why do you glow like that?" Tevos asks, "Can't you turn it off?" She hopes she isn't intruding too much by asking the question. </p><p>"The more active they are, the more they glow," Shepard says as she struggles to pull off some socks, "The more I get pissed off, the more they glow and the more I want to intimidate someone the more they glow. Right now, they are all active suppressing pain, reproducing lost nano-tech, stimulating my immune system, supporting my movements with my loss of strength in the abdomen area and generally helping me heal. This amount of glowing is normal activity for them after large injuries, and I'm pissed off trying to get this yobanaya suka sock off." The Russian is not translated.  </p><p>"Then they should be telling you to stay in bed." Tevos muses before helping the Human take their socks off.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Cheers for reading.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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